


Red Dawn

by SailorLestrade



Category: Supernatural
Genre: Alternate Universe, Angst, Brothers, Explicit Language, Hunters & Hunting, Hurt/Comfort, Minor Character Death, Multi, Other Additional Tags to Be Added, Soldier Dean, Soldiers, War, based on a movie, slight wincest
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-05-01
Updated: 2017-06-14
Packaged: 2018-10-26 17:14:40
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Major Character Death
Chapters: 18
Words: 30,385
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/10791096
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/SailorLestrade/pseuds/SailorLestrade
Summary: Calumet, Colorado is just a normal, American town. And the Winchesters are just a normal family. Until war breaks out on their doorstep. Now, they have to fight not only for their lives, but the lives of their friends, neighbors, and all of America. Based off the Red Dawn movies.





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> So I just decided to write this. There are defined pairings in this, and maybe a hint of Sam/Dean, or it might just be extremely close brothers. Take it how you want to. Anyway, feedback will be most appreciated. I’m not sure if I will continue it or not so the feedback will help!

The street of the small Colorado town was quiet. It was still early in the morning, and the only people awake were the ones that had to be. The Winchester house was no different. John Winchester was getting ready for work, making himself some coffee, while his youngest son was fast asleep. He had only been asleep for a few hours. He had been up late doing homework and watching random things on Netflix. His big thing right now was documentaries.

John was sure his son was going to grow up to be an evil genius.

John did the same thing that he did every morning when he had to work. He turned on the coffee pot, turned the TV on low to watch the news, and made himself a bowl of cereal or toast. But this morning, he added something new to his routine. He stopped to look at the pictures on the fridge. Up until a few years ago, he had been living happy in Kansas with his wife and two sons. But his wife was no longer with them, a car accident taking her from them. His oldest had been off in the Middle East, fighting a war that John wasn’t sure they could win, and his youngest son was a mopey teenager with the chance to play soccer at Stanford on the horizon.

The pictures on the fridge made him think about that. One of them was of Mary with Dean, back before Sam was born. Dean was a four year old little piece of hellfire, and Mary loved her little boy so much. Underneath it was a magnet of Sam in his junior league soccer uniform. It was currently holding up a menu to the Chinese place that Sam loved. There was a picture of John, Dean, and Sam sitting on the back of, at the time, John’s beloved Chevy Impala, years before he gave it to Dean. So many memories on one metal door.

That’s when John’s eyes came to a letter hanging there, right next to a calendar with a big red circle. Dean had been back in-country for going on a week now and was due to come back to Colorado any time now. He had things in Kansas he had left behind and he needed to get. John couldn’t wait to see the Impala pull up in the driveway beside his pickup. Thought he wouldn’t say it aloud, he missed his oldest son. John made his way to his coffee cup and looked at his phone that was on the charger.

1 unread text message from Dean.

A smile curled on John’s face as he opened the message.

Dean: Coming into town this morning. Don’t tell Sammy. I want to surprise him. School doesn’t start until 8 right?

John laughed to himself and sent Dean back a text, telling him that school started at 7:45 here, but Sam probably wouldn’t make it in until 8 if he didn’t get his butt in gear sometime soon.

Dean: Don’t worry, I got this.

John smiled. Leave it to Dean to take care of Sam. He had been doing it his whole life. Standing up to bullies, putting Band-Aids on Sam’s cuts and scrapes, cheering him on at matches when no one else could make it. Mary had died when Sam was just a little thing, so a lot of responsibility fell on Dean’s shoulders at a young age. But Dean didn’t seem to mind too much. Sam and Dean were two peas in a pod.

In the background of John’s breakfast, he could hear all about the failing businesses around the world, countries falling into despair as more threats of nuclear war coming from North Korea. John thought when he went to Vietnam all those years ago, that these things would’ve been over. But it wasn’t over, and he wasn’t sure it ever would be. He sighed and drained the rest of his coffee before rinsing it out and leaving it in the sink. If Sam was up early enough, he would do the usual routine of putting things into the dishwasher. If not, he would do it before the game.

“Shit.” John groaned. He had forgotten all about Sam’s match when he promised to work the emergency night shift at the garage he worked at. There was no way he could get out of it tonight, being such short notice. Thank god for Dean coming home. At least Sam would have someone there tonight. He’d make it up to him someday. But he knew he made that promise all the time.

He pulled on his faded green jacket with the patches and put his baseball cap on his graying hair. Looking around to make sure he hadn’t forgotten anything that he might need before he could come home for lunch, John locked the door and shut it, heading out to his truck to make the drive into work.

He turned on the radio in his truck, ignoring the usual news talk and going straight for the classic rock station. Blue Oyster Cult was the soundtrack for his drive as he made his way to the other end of Calumet. It was the same drive five days, sometimes six, a week. Past the same McDonalds with part of the M always fading out. Past the same bowling alley that Sam used to beg to have his birthday at until he got too old for those type of parties. The same movie theater that he had taken his sons to see their first R rated movie, even though they had already seen plenty of them. The mountains made a beautiful backdrop off in the distance. It wasn’t Kansas, but it was home. A change had done him and his boys a world of good.

“Mary would’ve loved this town.” He would tell himself over and over again, trying to justify not returning to Lawrence. But Lawrence held bad memories. Abandonment by his father, death of his wife, almost losing his youngest son to the same thing that took his wife from him, debt, grief, anger. There was too much there that made him not want to stay. Calumet was his home. Their home.

****

Dean walked into the house about a half hour after John had left. The clock on his phone said 7 on the dot. And the house was still dark, minus the lamp that John always left on. Pocketing his keys, Dean climbed the stairs two at a time towards the bedrooms, where he knew Sam was still probably fast asleep. Dean walked past his old bedroom. While there was some exercise equipment sitting in the middle of the room, the posters were still on the wall, the bed with the same quilt was still there, and other things that made the room his were still where they should be. Dean smiled some. He knew it wasn’t because John was sentimental, but he was glad that his space was still in tact.

He made his way to Sam’s room. He didn’t even bother to knock. They had never really knocked when going into each other’s rooms. They honestly never had a need to. And sure enough, as Dean walked in, he found Sam asleep in a pile of blankets. He shook his head as he looked around the room. It was spotless, minus a few dirty shirts laying on the floor. Much different than how Dean’s room had been pre military. Dean couldn’t help but smile as he made his way over to his brother.

“Sammy.” Dean said, poking as Sam’s side and head. “Saaammmmyyyy.”

“Sammy’s a chubby twelve year old.” Sam groaned, hiding under his blankets.

“Come on man. I come all the way from Iraq to see you and this is how you treat me?” Dean joked, poking at his brother again. Sam groaned.

“It’s still early. Leave me alone.” Sam said, pulling away from Dean. Dean laughed some.

“Well, according to my phone, it’s after 7.” He looked out the window. “And there goes your bus.” Sam shot up, his eyes wide.

“Shit!” Sam called out, jumping out of bed. “Dad’s gonna kill me! I can’t be late again.” Dean just watched his brother jump around like a monkey and laughed some. “What’s so funny jerk?”

“Well, bitch, I have a perfectly working car that I wouldn’t mind driving you to school with.” Dean said with a shrug.

“What? So you can drool over the barely legal girls?” Sam asked, rolling his eyes.

“Fine. You can explain to dad why you were late to school for…how many times now?” Dean asked. Sam groaned and threw his head back, looking up at the ceiling. As much as he hated to, he knew he had to ask Dean for help. He sighed.

“Dean, will you please drive me to school?” Sam asked.

“I don’t know. I have this really strict no whiny little…”

“I’ll pay for breakfast.” Sam said. That got Dean’s attention.

“Come on Sammy. We’ll stop by McDonalds on the way to school.” Dean laughed. Sam grabbed his soccer jersey and put it on. He had to wear it on the days that he had matches. Thankfully, this one was more ceremonial than actual play. “Bet that thing gets you all the girls.” Dean laughed. Sam rolled his eyes. “Or guys, I’m not judging.”

“Dude!” Sam said. Dean just laughed and headed out of Sam’s room while his brother finished getting things together for school.

Dean was waiting out on the front porch for Sam when his brother came out, carrying his heavy backpack on one shoulder. Dean stood up, letting his feet drop from the brick railing they had been on. He looked at Sam’s back as his brother walked down the steps in front of him.

“You know that’ll fuck up your spine, right?” Dean asked. Sam turned to look at him with an eyebrow raised.

“What?” Sam asked. Dean motioned at his backpack.

“Carry it with one strap.” Dean said. Sam rolled his eyes and threw open the door to the Impala. “Hey! Easy with Baby! She’s classic!” Dean said. Sam sighed and got into the passenger side, setting his bag on the floor at his feet. Dean climbed in shortly after, starting up the car. Metallica blared from the speakers.

“See your music choice hasn’t changed.” Sam said. Dean looked over at him before backing out of the driveway.

“Sorry, can’t hear you over how awesome my music is.” Dean laughed. “Too bad your emo shit can’t quite match up.”

“Oh bite me.” Sam mumbled. Dean laughed.

“Save that for Jessica.” Dean said. Sam looked at Dean with wide eyes. “Easy tiger, dad told me all about her.” Sam sighed and set back for the ride. He fished his wallet out of his pocket to pay for the breakfast from McDonalds. After Dean driving through Main Street and honking at everyone he remotely knew, they made it to the high school.

“You’d think they’d paint that by now.” Dean said, motioning to the fading Wolverine on the side of the building. He looked around at the parking lot. A dusty gravel lot. “Or pave the fucking parking lot. Come on, I just gave her a bath.”

“We’re a poor high school in the middle of nowhere.” Sam said. “Do you really expect us to have things like updated textbooks and a paved parking lot?”

“I’m just saying.” Dean said. He smiled at some girls who walked by, books in hand. “Well, guess you better get in there. Earn your diploma and all that jazz.” Sam sighed and grabbed his backpack, sliding out of the car. “Hey, aren’t you gonna give me a kiss?” Dean asked with a laugh. Sam slammed the door before flipping him off. He met up with a couple of his friends before heading inside the building. Dean waited for a moment before pulling out of the parking lot. A banner wishing their championship winning soccer team hung on the fence he drove by, gently blowing in the wind.


	2. Chapter 2

Dean pulled the Impala into the parking lot of a bar he loved to go to when he was at home. Not much had changed around here since he left, and the bar wasn’t much different. The only difference was him. He had always had muscles, but the military had tones them, making them show more under his black t-shirt. He left his dog tags around his neck, just a habit from being on base. They clanged together as he climbed out the Impala. He shut his door after reaching into the backseat and grabbing his favorite leather jacket. It wasn’t cold, but there was a chill in the air and after being over there, it was a little weird to not be covered in layers.

Pulling open the old door, Dean made his way into the bar. There weren’t of people in the building. Some older guys sitting around, shooting the bull. There were a couple of burnouts who either hadn’t left for college or dropped out. Dean bypassed them and made his way to the bar, settling himself on a stool a few away from the old men. 

“What can I get you son?” The same old bartender said, coming up to Dean. He always called him son.

“Just a beer Sal.” Dean said, smiling up at him. “The cheapest is fine.” Sal nodded and grabbed him a bottle out of the cool under the bar and pushed it over to him. Dean took it and took a sip, turned around on the stool to look out over the almost empty bar. Some pop song was playing on the jukebox in the corner, and the news was on. He could hear the old men down the bar from him talking about how the end of the world was near and they had been warning people for years. Dean rolled his eyes some.

“Well, if it isn’t the big bad hero.” A voice said off to Dean’s left and he cringed. He turned to see a woman standing there in the tightest jeans he had ever seen and a loose Johnny Cash t-shirt hanging off of her.

“Lisa Braeden…” Dean said. She walked over and took the seat next to him. Sal came up to her and she ordered her own beer. “Isn’t it a little early for you to be drinking?” Dean asked. She rolled her eyes.

“You’re drinking.” She pointed out. “Plus, this is night for me. Just got off a shift at the hospital.”

“Fair enough.” Dean said, drinking his beer. There was silence resting between the two of them for a good amount of time before Lisa spoke up. Dean had been expecting this.

“You know, if you didn’t want to call me, you didn’t have to run all the way to Iraq.” Lisa said. Dean sighed.

“I didn’t run…” He defended. “I was going anyway.”

“Well, between me sucking your cock and you fucking me, you could’ve added in a ‘by the way, I’m heading off to basic training’.” Lisa said. Dean groaned and closed his eyes. Dean was a womanizer, he knew it, she knew it. Hell, even Sal knew it. He had a bad reputation around Interstate 25, going all the way to Colorado Springs and such. She should’ve known it when she fell into bed with Dean Winchester, but he was just so damn hot.

“Look Lisa, I meant to call, I really did. I just don’t exactly have good reception over in Baghdad.” Dean joked. Lisa rolled her eyes.

“Do you know I had to find out from your little brother that you were off at war?” She asked. “He’s a really nice kid. All stuttery and such. Like I asked him who stole the last cookie or something.” Dean turned to look at her.

“You’ve been talking to my brother?” Dean asked. She shrugged.

“He’s dating my cousin. What do you expect?” She asked. Dean nodded slowly, taking it all in. He looked up at Sal. 

“Yeah, Sal, stow the beer. I’m gonna need some whiskey.” Dean said. Sal nodded and grabbed a glass and pour Dean a double. He slid it over Dean, who accepted it happily and took a swig of it, loving the burn in his chest.

“Dean, I’m not asking for some big, romantic display of affection or declaration of love.” Lisa said, staring the soldier down. “All I want is for you to apologize to me.” Dean groaned. He had secretly hoped when he left for basic that Lisa was some out of town girl visiting a grandma or someone, but he knew that wasn’t true. They had went to high school together, he just hadn’t noticed her at the time. She wasn’t always a curvy body in tight jeans and a fuck me smile.

“Look, Lisa…” Dean sighed, trying to find the best words to not make him sound like a douchebag. He looked around the bar, praying for something to save him. He eyed different pictures on the walls, posters for bands that had played in the past, the jukebox in the corner now sputtering out a damn good song, the old wooden floors. But nothing offered him an easy way out of this.

“Damn it Dean, how hard is to just say “I’m sorry”?” Lisa growled. Dean was about to say something sarcastic to her when the lights, TV, and jukebox in the bar all shut off at once. Dean looked over at Sal.

“I paid the damn bill.” Sal grumbled. Dean made his way over to the front door and opened it. He looked across the street at the family diner and the gas station. Both were as dark as the bar was.

“Sal, unless they didn’t pay their bill to, I say the whole block is out.” Dean explained. Sal grumbled something under his breath. Dean turned to look at Lisa.

“Can we finish this later?” He asked. “I need to get home.”

“Yeah.” Lisa sighed. Dean tossed some money on the bar for their beers and his whiskey before head out towards his Impala. He saw other people looking around on the street. He saw his dad walking out of the garage he worked at. 

“Dad!” Dean called out. John turned his attention to his oldest son. He walked over to him. “What the hell is going on? Transformer out?”

“I dunno.” John said with a shrug. “Boss asked me to stay around and hold down the fort. Might go check on some of the neighbors as soon as he gets back. Mrs. Mosley isn’t a spring chicken you know. I don’t want her to fall.”

“Yeah. I’m gonna head back home and wait on Sammy to get home. Call me if you need anything.” Dean told his dad. John nodded and patted his shoulder before heading back to the garage. Dean turned back to his car and got in, heading back home.

****

Sam walked into his history class with his book under his arm. He groaned at being tired, but he had a very good reason. And that reason was currently sitting on his desk with her feet on the attached chair. Her blond hair was up in a ponytail. She smiled at Sam as he came through the classroom door.

“Hi there Sam.” She said, watching as Sam’s cheeks reddened. He desposited his book on his chair before leaning up to kiss her.

“Jessica.” He said, trying to lower his voice as low as Dean’s, but it didn’t work. It never did. But Jessica always seemed to enjoy watching him try. “Sorry I fell asleep last night. Soccer is kicking my ass.”

“And a very nice one it is.” A voice said. Suddenly, someone was slapping Sam’s butt, making Jessica laugh loudly.

“Nice to see you too Crowley.” Sam growled. “Detention didn’t stick?”

“What can I say? I’m king of this hellhole. They’re not going to keep me locked away.” He laughed. Fergus Crowley was one of Sam’s best friends, and by best friend, the two really had a love hate relationship. Crowley just loved to get Sam riled up, and Jessica loved to watch. Jessica, Sam, Jessica’s friend Jo, Crowley, Cas Novak, Bobby Singer, Rufus Turner, Jimmy Murphy, and Caleb Padalecki were all as thick as thieves. They stuck together, got in trouble together, and hung out together all the time.

“Guys, you should probably sit down.” Caleb said, coming into the room and taking his seat. “Lucifer is on his way in.”

“Come on guys, he’s not that bad.” Jessica laughed. “I think he’s charming.”

“You would.” Crowley said, rolling his eyes. “The same way that Cas finds church enjoyable.”

“A lot of people do Fergus.” Jimmy said, taking his seat behind Caleb. “Just because you burn if you even look at a church doesn’t mean other people have the same problem.” Crowley rolled his eyes and was about to make a smart ass comment when their teacher walked through the door.

“Mr. Crowley, please take your seat.” Mr. Pellegrino said, heading to his desk. Crowley looked over at Sam as Jessica slid down into her seat and Sam took his. He held up a finger on each side of his head, showing devil horns, and mouthed “Satan” as he headed to his seat. Jessica giggled a little.

Mr. Pellegrino pulled down one of the maps above the chalkboard. It was the 21st century and they were still using pulldown maps, chalk boards, and those giant dinosaur TVs on a cart with a VCR/DVD combo plugged into it. Sam was amazed that they even had computers to do attendance on. Mr. Pellegrino adjusted his glasses and started on his speech. Sam saw Crowley falling asleep in the seat in front of Jimmy.

“Wake him up.” Sam mumbled to his friend.

“Nah. Think it’s time he faces his wrath.” Jimmy mumbled back.

“Mr. Winchester. Mr. Murphy. Is there something you want to share with the class?” Mr. Pellegrino asked.

“No sir.” Sam and Jimmy said together. Mr. Pellegrino nodded.

“Good. And Mr. Crowley, do wake up before I send you back to detention.” Mr. Pellegrino said. Crowley set up, half asleep.

“’M awake.” He said, rubbing his eyes, making Caleb laugh a little loudly. Mr. Pellegrino turned his attention back to his lecture when all the lights in the classroom shut out. Jessica turned around to look at Sam.

“What the hell?” Jimmy asked.

“Am I dreaming?” Crowley asked, rubbing his eyes. Mr. Pellegrino stuck his head out in the hallway and saw other teachers doing the same. A couple moments later, the vice principal came in and announced classes were cancelled for the rest of the day, as were any other after school activities. Including the soccer game.

“Damn.” Sam groaned. “Guess I get to spend the night with my brother.”

“Or you could come spend it with me.” Jessica giggled. Sam rolled his eyes.

“It’s Dean’s first night back in town. He’d kill me if I don’t stick around.” She laced her fingers with Sam’s and led him out of the school. Cas ran to catch up with them.

“Guys, I just got a news alert on my phone. Looks like power is out all over Colorado. Weird right?” He asked.

“Yeah, a little.” Sam said. Crowley came up then and got Cas in a headlock, ruffling his hair.

“Cassie! I missed you!” Crowley laughed. Cas groaned and pushed his friend away. “Come on guys. We should go have a barbecue or something.”

“Can’t.” Sam explained.

“Sammy boy has a date with his brother.” Jessica laughed, making Sam’s cheeks turn red.

“It’s not a date…” Sam whispered. Jessica smiled and led her boyfriend to her car, their friends following behind them.

“Want me to give you a ride home?” She asked. “Or do you want to catch the bus with these losers?”

“Car.” Sam said, pointing over at her Mustang. She smiled.

“Don’t we get to go?” Caleb asked.

“Go ask Rufus.” Jessica said. “He’s got a car too.” Her and Sam got into her car.

“Yeah! A Pinto!” Jimmy called out to her. She smiled and waved at the boys as she drove off, leaving them to find their own way home.

“That was just mean.” Sam laughed. “God I love you.” Jessica smiled over at Sam.

“I love you too.” She told him as she headed towards his home. The McDonald’s with the messed up M was completely dark, the marquee on the theater wasn’t lit up, but the mountains were still there. It was all a little surreal. Sure, there had been power outages before, especially in the winter time, but not in the summer like this. But Jessica was at his side and the sun was shining, so things couldn’t be going that bad.

Right?


	3. Chapter 3

Dean was in a chair on the front porch, feet up on the railing, enjoying the sunlight. He had a magazine open across his lap, but he wasn’t paying much attention to it. He was too busy listening to the birds chirp and the bits of conversation from neighbors as they settled themselves outside. He knew that John was busy and had to hold down the fort at other places. But it made Dean a little mad that he would’ve just left Sam to deal with this by himself. Yeah, Sam was older now and more than capable of lighting some candles and eating cookies out of the bag, but he was still a kid. Dean was just glad that he was home.

Dean had gotten an alert on his phone from the local news, saying school were being dismissed early to a state wide power outage. Dean was on high alert as he waited for Sam to get home. It was well past the time that he should’ve been, and he didn’t get off the bus with the others on the block when it went by. That’s when a Mustang pulled up in front of the house.

“Is that your brother?” Jo asked from the backseat. She had been walking from the school when Jessica and Sam drove by, so of course Jessica picked her up. Jo was her best friend after all, and the guys had Rufus’s Pinto they could ride in, no matter how crowded it was.

“Yeah…” Sam said, moving to get out of the car.

“He’s cute.” Jo giggled. Jessica rolled her eyes.

“Do you ever think with your brain and not your pussy?” Jessica asked. Jo just shrugged. Sam walked around the car to Jessica’s window and smiled at her.

“See you tomorrow?” HE asked. She giggled some.

“You know it.” She leaned up and kissed him. She took off then, Jo craning her neck to stare at Dean. Sam shook his head when a horn sounded. He looked to see the Pinto pull up to the curb. Caleb, Jimmy, Bobby, and Cas all climbed out, stretching and popping their backs. They all lived around here, that’s why they were all so close.

“Thanks for nothing.” Caleb grumbled. Crowley popped out of the trunk then.

“Did they stuff you in the trunk?” Sam asked. Crowley shrugged.

“It’s cold, dark, and smells like Rufus’s gym shorts. Its home.” Crowley laughed. Sam rolled his eyes and looked up at the porch. Dean was watching them, but trying to not be super obvious about it. Sam sighed.

“I’ll see you guys later, alright?” Sam asked. The guys nodded and split up, heading to their homes while Rufus drove off. Sam turned and made his way up to the porch.

“Glad to see the gang is still together.” Dean commented. “Who are the chicks?”

“The one eyeing you like a piece of meat. She harmless, most of the time.” Sam explained, heading inside. “And the other one is Jessica.” Dean smirked and followed his brother inside the house, watching as Sam tossed his backpack on the couch and made his way into the kitchen to find some food.

“So that’s the famous Jessica.” Dean said. “Damn Sam, how’d you manage that one?”

“What do you mean?” Sam asked, opening the fridge and staring inside. Dean watched him.

“What are you doing?” Dean asked, ignoring the question Sam had asked. Sam had been standing with the door open for a little too long.

“Looking for something to eat.” Sam said. “And I want some milk.”

“Well, that’s all good and shit, but we’re in the middle of a power outage. I think you should keep the door closed as much as possible.” Dean commented. Sam rolled his eyes and slammed the door shut, taking the milk with him. Dean sighed. Sam was a grumpy teenager, that was for sure. “So, dad has some things to do tonight, so it’ll just be you and me.” Sam sighed.

“What’s different than any other night?” He asked. Dean raised an eyebrow. Just how often was Sam left alone? He knew that John was doing the best he could, but this was ridiculous. “Well, I guess I’ll sit in my room and read or something.”

“Don’t you wanna catch up or something?” Dean asked. “It’s been months since we last talked.”

“And nothing’s changed.” Sam said, taking his glass of milk and heading towards the stairs.

“Come on. You got a girl. Tell me all about her.” Dean said. He and Sam had been so close all these years and suddenly, nothing. Sam had grown up and Dean had went away. Sam had relied on his friends for support while Dean relied on his brothers in arms.

“You don’t really care.” Sam said, heading upstairs to his bedroom. Dean sighed and flopped down on the couch. He really wished he knew what was going through Sam’s head, why he was so…this. He remembered from the letters he got from John that Sam had a bit of a rebellious streak. He was a sweet kid and would help out anyone that needed help, but he wanted to do things his way and a lot of times, that didn’t match up with how John wanted to do things. John loved his youngest, but sometimes he just needed away from him. Hence all the work he had done since the boys could be trusted alone by themselves.

A couple hours later, Sam came downstairs and flopped into the chair across from Dean, who was dozing on the couch. Dean opened one eye and looked over at his brother. He needed a damn haircut.

“What happened to reading?” Dean asked. Sam sighed.

“Bored.” He groaned. “And hungry.”

“Well, we can’t really cook anything.” Dean said. “But dad still has the barbecue out back, right?” Sam nodded. Dean jumped up and went out back, firing up the grill and cooking them up some steaks and potatoes. Might as well eat things up. They weren’t sure when the power was going to come back. They set outside at an old picnic table where they had had many meals during the summer, usually with more friends and a little more beer.

“So…” Dean said after a little bit. “Dad told me there were scouts one of your games.”

“Yeah.” Sam said through a mouthful of food. He swallowed the steak and took a drink of the water. “I was offered a scholarship to play for Stanford. And I want to study law. So it’s perfect.” Dean nodded.

“Need me to move out there so you have a place to live?” Dean asked. He was sure that Sam thought he was joking, but it was a serious offer, if need be.

“Well, I think I’m going to live in a dorm my first year.” Sam explained. “But Jessica is going to go there too, and if she hasn’t gotten tired of me by then, we’re going to get a place together.”

“Any of the guys going?” Dean asked, knowing how close knit the group was.

“Jimmy’s going to be a preacher or something.” Sam told Dean. “Bobby wants to work on cars. Rufus said that his calling is owning a brewery. Jo will probably inherit a bar or something from the guy she convinces to marry her and then kills him.” Sam laughed some at the joke. “Caleb is going to Colorado State to study computer engineering. Cas wants to head out to LA and try his hand at acting. And Crowley will probably end up in prison or something.”

“Sounds like you guys have everything planned out.” Dean said, finishing off his food.

“Yeah, for the most part.” Sam said. He didn’t feel like talking to Dean about this, but he had mentioned once to Cas and Crowley while they were over at Jimmy’s drinking his dad’s beer, that he wanted to ask Jessica to marry him. He knew if he told Dean, his brother would tell him he was too young.

They got up to carry their dishes inside when there was a loud boom that shook the house, knocking things off the shelf and pictures off the walls and the fridge. Sam bent down and picked up the picture of him, Dean, and John sitting on the Impala when it happened again.

“What the hell?” Sam asked, looking over at his brother. Sam kept the picture in his hand as he grabbed his letter jacket and wallet from the living room and made his way outside. He looked up at the sky as another boomed shook the earth.

Above him were a large line of airplanes. Big, black ones that defiantly didn’t have US Air Force markings on them. White parachutes dotted the sky like clouds, the men on the end of them targeting the ground below. Sam stood there, planted in the front lawn staring at the display above him. He couldn’t quite make sense of what he was seeing. This wasn’t some war movie. This was real life.

That’s when one of the planes was hit with a missile. The plane exploded then, breaking into several pieces and falling to the ground, hitting his neighbor’s houses with loud explosions. Sam’s eyes were wide with fear and panic as he watched the scene. Dean came marching out of the house then with his own jacket, his wallet, and keys in hand.

“Sammy! We have to find dad!” Dean called out to his brother. Sam nodded and followed Dean toward the Impala, sliding into the passenger seat while Dean started it. Sam tried to get the radio to turn on, to figure out something, but there was nothing but static. Dean sped along the street, looking around for any sign of John while checking the sky.

“What is this?” Sam asked, fear in his voice. Dean wished he had all the answers, to make his little brother know it was okay.

“I don’t know.” Dean said, hands gripping the steering wheel. There was a large fire in the middle of the street and Dean wasn’t having it. “Shit! Hold on Sammy!” He called out as he sped through it, making Sam’s eyes go wide with fear.

“Dad!” Sam said, pointing towards his dad’s truck speeding towards them. Dean nodded and pulled up by the truck.

“Stay behind me!” John barked at his son. Dean nodded and gunned it, following John’s truck down the street, smoke making everything harder to see. Paratroopers were hitting the ground left and right, one managing to shoot out John’s tires, causing him to swerve off the road and hit a lamp post.

“Dad!” Sam screamed out the window. John waved his boys off.

“Get out of here! Go! Go!” He screamed at them. Sam looked over at Dean.

“We can’t just leave him Dean!” Sam yelled at his brother.

“I have to keep you safe Sammy!” Dean shot back. They drove off, away from John as paratroopers advanced on his truck.

“Dean! There’s Cas!” Sam called out. Dean hit the locks on the car and Sam threw open the passenger door, letting Cas jump into the car.

“What the fuck?!” Cas screamed. Before he had time to answer, the back doors opened and Jimmy, Caleb, and Crowley were shoving themselves into the backseat. Dean looked into the rearview mirror to see Rufus’s crappy old Pinto behind him. He wasn’t sure who was in the car with him, but he knew he had to get all of them out of there. Sam looked out the window then to see Jessica and Jo being dragged out of Jessica’s house. Jo had probably went over there since her mom wasn’t home yet and she left her keys at home.

“Jessica!” Sam screamed, trying to get to the door to let her in, but one of the men that had her and Jo fired at the car, making Dean speed off. “No! Go back! Jessica!”

“We can’t Sam! It’s too dangerous!” Cas told him. Sam turned in his seat and watched as the girls were pushed into a car. Jo was fighting, that much he could see, but he couldn’t see Jessica anymore.

“Dean, head toward my dad’s gas station. Heading out toward the mountains.” Caleb directed. Dean nodded as he left the neighborhood. Sam set between him and Cas in silence, staring straight ahead as Dean got them out of Calumet.


	4. Chapter 4

The Impala and the Pinto pulled up in front of the Padalecki’s gas station. While there were two old pumps out front, Mr. Padalecki sold more than just your typical convenience store things. There were also a lot of sporting goods in there, and even shotguns and ammo. Caleb’s dad, Rick, was standing outside of the station, watching everything happening in the distance. They hadn’t made it this far out, so he was safe for now.

“Dad!” Caleb said, jumping out of the Impala. Dean turned back to look at the Pinto. Rufus, Bobby, and Lisa climbed out of it. Dean raised an eyebrow. Lisa raised her hands up in defense.

“Hey, wrong place, wrong time.” She said. “These boys saved my life.” Dean nodded and made his way over to Rick and Caleb. They were all standing around them, all looking like scared kids. Dean put a hand on Sam’s shoulder, noticing the way his brother looked. The way he stared at the ground.

“They were shooting everybody.” Caleb said, a little panicked. “Dad, what is going on?!”

“We have to get to the mountains.” Dean told Rick. “It’ll be safe there. There’s all those caves we can hide in.” Rick nodded.

“Did you guys catch anything?” Rick asked. “Like you could figure out who they were or something.” Sam looked up then.

“They were speaking Korean.” He said softly. Everyone turned to look at him. “I think they’re North Koreans.” Everyone had heard about the threats that the country had been throwing at them, the hate that they were spewing. But none of the members of the small group thought that it would go far past hacking Sony and leaking The Interview and Annie out for all to see.

“You guys get inside and grab anything you need.” Rick said. “Food, water, guns.” They all nodded and headed inside. Sleeping bags, guns, ammo, lanterns, boxes of food, cans of Coke, Capri Suns, candy, tampons for Lisa, and other things were loaded into bags and boxes. Dean ran out and unlocked the trunk of the Impala. He always joked that it could hold a couple bodies. Now it was loaded to the gills with supplies they would need. What couldn’t fit in there went into Rufus’s car. Somewhere in the mess, Misha managed to grab a football and Caleb got his dad’s guitar. Once they got to their camp, they could better sort things out and get it organized. But right now was just surviving.

“Is that one of ours?” Bobby asked as a helicopter flew past them.

“I couldn’t see the markings.” Dean commented. “We need to get out of here though before we find out.” Caleb turned to ask his dad to come with them, to hide out and be safe, but Rick shook his head no before Caleb could even get the words out.

“Take care of my son.” Rick told Dean, who was climbing behind the wheel of the Impala.

“I will sir.” Dean said, nodding. Rick offered a small smile before he pulled Caleb into a hug.

“I love you Caleb. Be safe okay.” He said. Caleb nodded.

“Love you too dad. Tell mom the same.” Rick nodded and opened the backdoor for his son. Crowley and Jimmy had climbed into the backseat, Cas taking up his seat beside Sam in the front again. Rufus, Bobby, and Lisa headed back to the Pinto. The Impala started to pull away.

“Whatever you hear, don’t come back here!” Rick called out after them. “I’ll come for you when it’s safe!” Caleb watched out the back glass as his dad started to disappear from view, finally, he turned and settled in his seat, Jimmy offering him a sad smile.

“Open the glove compartment.” Dean instructed Sam a bit later. “I have a pistol in there. Get it out and check if it’s loaded.” While Sam did that, Dean thought of something else. “Is anyone’s cell phone working?” There was rustling as the boys checked their pockets for their phones, if they even had them. There was a chorus of no from everyone in the car. “That’s what I thought.”

“What are we going to do?” Sam asked, the pistol laying loaded in his lap. Dena glanced over at him. Everyone in the car was quiet. Dean was their savior and they needed him to know what was going on.

“We’re going to hide out in the mountains.” Dean explained. “Set up a camp and fight like our lives depend on it.” Because, as far as any of them knew, it did. Driving as fast as he could, Dean dodged vehicles that were defiantly not civilian ones. Dean remembered a path that he used to use to sneak the Impala up into the mountains to hide out when he just needed away from the world. He found it easily, like he had never left Calumet. 

No one uttered a word as they made the drive up into the woods. Dean knew the right cave to hide the Impala in. He wasn’t sure if Rufus’s car would be able to fit in there too, but he knew there were more caves up here and plenty of trees to hide the car in. His mind started to drift a little as he drove along the path. Of all people that Bobby and Rufus had to save, it was Lisa. They couldn’t have gotten to Jessica? They couldn’t have found John? No. It had to be Lisa and now, Dean was stuck with her for who knew how long.

“Okay boys, I’m going to stow the Impala. We’ll get everything out and see what we have. Did anyone grab a radio and batteries?” Dean asked.

“Yeah I did.” Jimmy said. Dean nodded.

“Good, good.” He said. He found the cave he wanted and pulled the car into it. It was dark and gloomy, but it was safe. Rufus followed behind, the Pinto fitting in behind the Impala. Everyone got out of the cars and just stood there. Dean leaned against his car and ran a hand down his face. He had stared death in the face time and time again in the Middle East, but this time was different. This time, his little brother was right in the middle of it with him, and he didn’t have body armor to protect him.

“What now?” Lisa asked after a moment. Everyone just sort of stood there.

“Uh…what about checking our supplies and rationing?” Sam suggested. Dean nodded.

“Good idea.” Dean said. He opened the trunk to the Impala and pulled boxes out of it while Rufus got things out of his car. This was one of the few times that Rufus had been glad to have his dad’s old car, even if it was an ugly color and was horrible on gas. It was his and it had saved his life. If he hadn’t have had it, he didn’t know where he would be right now. Probably in the same place Jo and Jessica were being sent to.

“You doin’ okay Rufus?” Bobby asked, sitting the boxes out by the ones from the Impala.

“Fan-fucking-tastic.” He said. Bobby sighed and looked over at the others. Dean and Lisa, being the oldest two in the ground, were cataloging and organizing the supplies. Sam was sitting off by himself while Jimmy, Cas, Crowley, and Caleb chatted amongst themselves about what they had just witnessed.

“We’re fucked, aren’t we?” Bobby asked, looking over at Rufus. Rufus sighed.

“I think so Bobby.” He said. He went to the cave entrance and looked out over the forest. The town wasn’t visible from where they were, but the sounds of bombs in the distance was clear. Just when the sound stopped, it started again.

“Okay guys, we’re going to camp out with the cars tonight. I think that’s our best bet. And we’ll set up watch shifts for tonight.” Dean said, standing from the supplies. “Tomorrow, we’ll set up an actual camp farther up the mountain. And sent up warning systems and such.”

“I’ll take first shift.” Sam volunteered. Dean was about to protest, that he didn’t want his brother doing shift duty at all, but he didn’t want to start a riot already. He was just glad these boys were willing to listen to him. He knew that they were all pretty hard headed after watching Sam hang out with them all these years. Sam took one of the shotguns and set just outside the cave to keep watch. 

Dean wanted to go out there and talk to him, but he wasn’t sure what to say. He couldn’t just say “hey, sucks your girlfriend was kidnapped and we left dad behind”. He sighed and went back to his car to get the radio that Jimmy had gotten. He wanted to see if there was signal out there somewhere.

“Dean…” Lisa said. Dean looked at her. “Never mind. We’ll just talk later.” Dean just nodded and turned his attention back to the task at hand. After a moment of static and crackles, a voice could be heard.

“Guys! We got a signal!” Dean called out. “Come here!”


	5. Chapter 5

Sam came back into the cave after some convincing from Dean. He stood behind the others as they gathered around the radio to listen to the news that was coming through. The boom box that Jimmy had grabbed probably hadn’t seen the light of day since the ‘80’s, but at that moment, it was the best thing in the entire world. Everyone was quiet, listening for the noise.

“As a reminder straight from the White House, do not leave your homes unless absolutely necessary. The United States has enacted a civil emergency effective for all 50 states and territories. We will stay on the air with you for as long as we can in order to keep you updated on all incoming information…”

“Dear god.” Jimmy said. “What do you think is going on out there?”

“Nothing good, that’s for sure.” Caleb said. He looked over at Dean.

“We need to get some sleep.” Dean said. “Sammy, I’ll come out in a few hours and take over for you, okay?” Sam nodded and headed out to his post. Dean sighed some and opened the Impala. He had slept there more than once in his life. “Lisa, if you want the backseat, you can take it.” She nodded and crawled in. Everyone found a spot to be comfortable for the night.

But no one really slept.

****

After the sun rose in the distance, everyone gathered their supplies and moved a little bit higher on the mountain, where the trees were thicker and there was a lake with decent water. If it got too cold or started to rain, they could head back to the cave or another one to keep warm and dry. Lisa watched the boys snapping sticks and kicking rocks.

“How long do you really think we’re going to survive up here on olive and Rice Krispies?” Rufus asked. Dean looked over at him.

“It’s food. It’ll keep us going.” He said. Rufus shook his head.

“What else are we supposed to do?” Cas asked. “Not like we can walk into two and order from Marco’s.” Rufus sighed.

“Rufus man, we’ll make it through this.” Caleb said. “The government is bound to send troops here soon. We just have to wait.”

“With this administration? I highly doubt it.” Rufus said, rolling his eyes. “We’ll be lucky if they can figure out their ass from a hole in the ground.”

“We’ve got Dean.” Bobby said. “He’s a soldier. Or was one. I trust him to keep us safe. Right Jimmy?”

“Yeah!” Jimmy said.

“And I’m a nurse.” Lisa commented. “So I can teach you guy’s basic first aid and CPR.”

“I’ll volunteer for you to use me as your dummy.” Caleb said, batting his eyelashes at her. Dean rolled his eyes.

“I know CPR. They made us learn in soccer.” Sam spoke up.

“There, go be Sam’s dummy.” Cas laughed. Caleb punched him in the shoulder.

“Shut up Cas.” Caleb growled. Rufus busted out laughing, watching Cas and Caleb fight just like old time. It was almost like twenty-four hours ago, their worlds weren’t turned upside down by an invasion. Or that they just left their families behind. Dean started work on a fire then. HE had grabbed some cans of soup and beans while they were at the store. The adrenaline had worn off and now he was feeling hungry. And he sure the boys and Lisa were too.

Sam walked over after a little bit. The boys were telling embarrassing stories to Lisa, and Sam wasn’t really in the mood for that. Instead, he took up the task of finding firewood for Dean. When they were kids, John used to take Dean and Sam hiking and camping up in these very mountains. He taught them basic survival that he had learned while over in Vietnam. He taught them how to hunt, how to fish, and what natural vegetation they could eat and what to stay away from. Sam had usually gotten the task of searching for firewood while Dean and John did other things. But that was before Dean had left. John took Sam hiking once after that, but he was always too busy. Sam and the boys took it up though, and the epic parties they would throw would have made Dean proud.

“Thanks Sammy.” Dean said, taking the bundle from Sam.

“You know, you really don’t have to call me Sammy all the time. I’m not a twelve with baby fat anymore.” Dean looked over at his brother. He had lost quite a bit of weight since the last time Dean was home. And he had gotten a lot taller. It was only a matter of time before he bypassed Dean. All the soccer had been good for the kid. And he really was the kid of the group. He wouldn’t be 18 until right before his graduation and the only reason for that was because he skipped a grade in elementary school.

“Eh, I like it. Been doing it for seventeen years. Why stop now?” He flashed his signature smile at Sam. Sam rolled his eyes and watched the fire burn for a little bit before he spoke up again.

“Do you think dad’s okay?” Sam asked. Dean looked over at his brother.

“Dad’s a hard headed son of a bitch. I’m sure he’s perfectly fine.” Dean said, even though he wasn’t entirely sure about that. He wanted to have faith in his dad, that he would be fine and they would all be reunited in a few days, week tops, but a nagging part in his head told him that wouldn’t be the case. But he wasn’t going to let Sam know that. Sam needed to know that everything would be okay and that his brother was going to protect him. And that they weren’t going to lose their dad too. And Sam seemed to accept Dean’s answer, because he didn’t say any more about it.

“You think being stranded on a mountain while the country is invaded will be a good enough excuse for not returning from leave?” Sam asked with a smile. Dean laughed some.

“Well, probably, but I’m not on leave.” Dean said. “I was actually transferred to a base in Colorado with a shiny new promotion. I’m a sergeant.” Dean said. “So I should be around more often. Even though someone is running off to California.”

“In my defense, if the school in Texas I applied to offered me the scholarships Stanford is offering me, I’d go there too.” Sam laughed. Dean just smirked and shook his head. “I guess it won’t matter though if we’re stuck up here.”

“We just need to wait it out.” Dean said. “I got some buddies that are going to come kick some ass and we can go home. Hell, I’ll even let you have a beer when this is all done and over with.” Sam smiled some. This was the most him and Dean had talked in a long time. They had been drifting for a while, and one day something just snapped and Sam didn’t want to be friends with his brother anymore.

“You know they’re talking about us, right?” Sam commented, glancing over at the boys and Lisa. Dean sighed.

“Yeah I know. Lisa’s probably asking why we’re so worried about our dad but not our mom.” Dean sighed. “I’ll talk to her later about it. Get it out of the way.” Sam nodded.

“She’s nice.” Sam said. “Doesn’t really seem like your type though.”

“She was for one night.” Dean said with a wink. Sam made a face.

“That’s gross dude.” Sam shook his head.

“I’m guessing that they’re all staying.” Dean commented. He looked at all of their supplies. “This will probably last us for long enough if you guys can keep your teenage hunger at bay.” There were leaves and grass crunching under foot as the others made their way to the fire.

“It’s chilly.” Jimmy said. Dean nodded and scooted over by Sam, indicating for the others to take a seat. Lisa set across the fire from Dean, watching him and not even trying to hide it. Dean looked up and made eye contact with her. She was about to say something when Caleb spoke up.

“How long do you think we’re going to be here?” Caleb asked. Dean looked up at the sky as the sound of a plane filled the air. No one spoke, like they were afraid the person piloting the plane could hear them and would come for them.

“Hear that?” Dean asked after a second. “When we can’t hear that anymore, that’s when we can go back home.”


	6. Chapter 6

The boys weren’t sure how long they had been there. It felt like months but had only been a few weeks, one month tops. They focused on learning skills. Dean taught them how to handle a gun, running random exercises without telling them on how to hide quickly in any situation and also how to fight back and steal a gun from someone. It resulted in several bruises and cuts, but that’s where Lisa came into play. She used what she had available to create slings, bandages, stiches, and whatever else they might need.

“Dude, your brother is going to be the death of me.” Bobby groaned, throwing himself onto his sleeping bag. Sam shook his head and rested against a tree and flipped the pocket knife he had found in one of the boxes. It was getting colder out, so Sam was bundled up in his letter jacket. A piece of better times. Just when they thought that they planes had stopped, they heard them again followed by more bombs.

“Cas, Sam. Come with me.” Dean said, gun hanging off his shoulder. “Bring your guns. We’re going hunting.”

“Thank god.” Lisa groaned. “I’m running out of ways to make jerky and Spam taste good.” Dean rolled his eyes some before motioning for Sam and Cas again. They were going deer hunting and Sam was almost as good of a shot as Dean was. And Cas was just along for their enjoyment, even though he shot a little better than the other guys did. The two boys grabbed their guns and followed Dean deeper into the woods.

They set in silence for a while, just listening to the sounds of nature. It was so peaceful. Dean even considered building a house up here once this was all done and over with. As much as he loved easy access to a bar and the nightlight of Colorado Springs, he enjoyed his quiet time just as much. Especially after being around bombs and screaming people for a good chunk of his 20’s.

Movement out of the corner of Dean’s eyes had him tensing up some, until he saw a beautiful buck walking through the clearing. He smiled and nudged Cas, motioning with his head at the deer. Cas nodded and raised his gun, aiming at the buck and firing. The shot rang out and the deer fell. Cas smiled and jumped up.

“I got him!” Cas said, a little too excited. Dean looked over at Sam and gave him a wink before leading the two boys over to the deer. Cas was about ready to shoot it again when Dean placed a hand on his gun.

“Never shoot twice.” Dean explained. Cas did that thing he did where he tilted his head to the side, wanting more explanation. “If you shoot twice, it’s easier to pinpoint where you’re at.” Dean pulled a knife out of his jacket pocket and flicked it open. “You gotta cut the throat man.” Dean knelt down and helped with the task. “Sammy and I used to go hunting with dad a lot. We did a training thing one time where we had to stay hidden from him for the whole week. If we could, he gave us $50 a piece. And one of the skills we learned was stealth killing.”

“You forgot the most important one Dean.” Sam said, looking over at Dean with a small smirk on his face.

“What? What is it?” Cas asked. Dean looked at him, biting his lip to keep from laughing.

“This is your first time, right? Hunting virgin?” Dean asked. Cas nodded, his cheeks reddening some. “Well, you gotta drink it if it’s your first Cassie.”

“D-drink it? Drink what?” Cas asked. Dean looked at Sam.

“You know what.” Dean said, finding his makeshift cup that he had brought with him and pouring out the tiny bit of water that was left in it from the hunting trip.

“What’s it taste like?” Cas asked, fear evident in his voice.

“It’s not too bad.” Sam said with a shrug. “It’s salty, that’s for sure. Just imagine you’re eating a rare steak or something.” Dean got some of the blood in the cup.

“And you gotta do it.” Dean added. “Or you’ll piss off the spirit of the deer and I can’t imagine its ghost would be happy.” Cas nodded and reached out, taking the warm cup from Dean.

“When you drink it, you’ll be a real hunter.” Sam said, seeing the unsure look in Cas’s eyes. “And you want to be a real hunter, right?” Cas nodded. “Then bottoms up.” Cas took a deep breath then started to chug the red liquid.

“Come on little buddy. You can do it.” Dean encouraged. Cas set the empty cup down and looked up at the brothers. “You did it. Good job man.” He gave Cas a high five.

“Our dad said that once you did that, there was something different about you.” Sam explained. Cas nodded.

“That’s good right?” Cas asked. Sam shrugged.

“I guess so man.” Cas nodded again. “I mean, I’ve never done it before.” Cas’s eyes widened as the Winchester brothers broke out laughing.

“What do you mean you’ve never done it before?! You told me what it tasted like!” Cas said. Dean kept laughing loudly.

“No man! Our dad never made us drink deer blood before! I can’t believe you did it!” Dean laughed. Cas glared him down, but he was secretly glad that he was being included in their little thing.

****

“We’re almost out of beans.” Rufus announced that night. The boys had taken care of gutting and cleaning the deer while Rufus and Lisa took care of cooking. She was an amazing cook and could work wonders with what little bit they had. Dean had tried to cook for them their first week up on the mountain, and it hadn’t exactly turned out well.

“What about the olives? And the crackers?” Dean asked.

“Pretty low on everything except the deer you guys have shot and the fish we’ve caught.” Bobby explained. “And as much as I hate to say it, we’re going to need something besides meat to survive on.” Dean sighed and a pinched the bridge of his nose, trying to figure out what to do next. Bobby was right after all. And winter was coming up fast. All the food that was safe for them to eat out here would be dying off soon.

“Tomorrow morning, I’ll go into town.” Dean announced.

“Not alone you’re not.” Lisa said, standing up.

“I’m not letting any of you come with me. What if I get caught?”

“So?” She asked, crossing her arms over her chest. “It’s not safe for you to go by yourself.”

“And it’s not safe to have a group of teenagers suddenly appear after almost two months of being missing either.” Dean shot back. The two of them started bickering back and forth, throwing around slurs and colorful words at each other. Caleb leaned over to Jimmy.

“I bet they’ll be fucking by the end of the week.” Caleb said. Jimmy watched them.

“I give them three days.” He said. Rufus shook his head.

“I bet they’ll be going at it in the back of his Impala by tonight.” He told the two of them, making them laugh a little bit.

“You’re not going. That’s final. I’ll take Sammy with me and that’s it.” Dean growled at the woman. Lisa smirked at him.

“Wanna bet?”


	7. Chapter 7

It was quiet as Dean, Sam, and Lisa made their way towards Calumet. Burnt up tanks and Jeeps set along the fields leading to the town. Dean had left the Impala behind, knowing that it would be quicker but knowing it would be spotted. He was trying to find a vehicle out here that wasn’t destroyed, covered in blood and guts, or stuck in the mud from the recent rain that had fallen. Sam’s eyes widened as he stared at a burnt up tank with a body half hanging out of it, red visible on black, charred fabric.

“Sam, don’t look.” Lisa said gently, turning the younger boy away from the scene. “Your brother shouldn’t have brought you.”

“It’s okay…” Sam whispered softly. “He’s just trying to look out for me.” Lisa shook her head. She knew that Sam wasn’t a baby and was more than capable of watching out for himself, but he was just a kid. Hell, even Jessica was older than him but a few months. Jess would be eighteen in October, and Sam wouldn’t be until May. All of his friends were either eighteen or would be very shortly. Lisa and Dean were both in their twenties. He was just a kid and a warzone was no place for a kid.

“Come on.” Dean said, motioning for them. Lisa and Sam followed him to a dirt pile. Crouching down behind it, Dean pulled out a pair of binoculars to check out Calumet. Lisa and Sam peaked over the dirt hill, seeing cars driving down the street and people walking around.

“Dean, the stores are all open. There are people everywhere. Is it over?” Sam asked, looking at his brother with hope in his eyes. Hope that he could go home. Hope that they would see their dad again and he would get to see Jessica. Hope that things were going back to normal.

“There’s troops. Are they ours?” Lisa asked, looking over at Dean.

“No.” Dean said, lowering the binoculars. “They’re not ours. Not at all.” Lisa and Sam looked at each other. “Stash the guns. We don’t want to draw attention to ourselves. We shouldn’t need a truck to get to town, but we might need it to get stuff back to the mountain.” Lisa and Sam nodded, hiding their weapons behind the pile. Dean looked at his pistol and sighed, leaving it behind. He didn’t want to risk being frisked.

“Ready?” Sam asked. Dean nodded.

“Let’s go.”

****

There were a lot of soldiers walking around holding rifles as Sam, Dean, and Lisa slipped into town. They were walking with civilians, like they belonged there. Dean watched a car drive by, the mayor’s car. The mayor and his wife were in the front seat while a soldier with two girls were in the back seat. Sam was looking to see if maybe it was Jessica in the backseat, but it wasn’t. It was a girl from his calculus class named Anna and her older sister Naomi.

“What the fuck is going on here?” Dean whispered. “Come on. It looks like the Robinson’s store is still open.” Sam and Lisa followed along with Dean, trying their best to blend in. People adverted their eyes away from them, and even went as far as to pretend they weren’t there when Dean tried to talk to them. Lisa and Sam looked at each other, a little worried to what was going on.

The streets were littered with rubble. Tanks and checkpoints were set up in random places. The library, town hall, and other places had lots of soldiers hanging out around them. Propaganda posters with Kim Jong-un’s face on them were plastered all over walls and lamp posts. Sam wanted to turn around and go back to the mountain, but Dean was here and Dean always made things better.

The bell rang above the door as the three made their way into the store. Lisa looked around, noticing sparse shelves and soldier loitering. Dean made his way to the counter to talk to the girl while Lisa and Sam made their way over to the magazine rack.

“Hey Cassie. How’s your old man?” Dean asked when Cassie recognized him. She put her book down and offered Dean a small smile.

“Dean? Oh my god what are you doing here?” Cassie asked.

“We’ve been hiding out and we need supplies.” Dean whispered, noticing a solider looking over their way.

“You have to get out of here. They’re looking for you guys.” Cassie told him. Dean looked over at Sam and Lisa before turning his attention back to Cassie. “They have Sam’s school records. They think he’d be an asset. Lisa is a nurse. They are in high demand. They want the kids Dean. And you don’t want them to get them.”

“We just want to find out what’s going on.” Dean said. Cassie glanced up at one of the soilders before motioning for her brother. He came over.

“Hey Dean.” He said.

“Ryan, we have a delivery that needs picked up around back.” Cassie explained, making Ryan nod in acknowledgement. “You can pick up your order from Ryan.”

“Cassie, have you seen my dad?” Dean asked as Ryan left to pack some secret supplies from an unmapped subbasement. “I saw he wasn’t at the garage and I was going to go by the house but…” Cassie shook her head. “What?”

“We’re not supposed to talk about this, no one is, but I figure they’re going to come for me anyway.” She sighed. “People that were making trouble, they got rounded up and taken away. Your dad probably isn’t home. When he realized they had Sam’s school records and were asking around where he was, he started to rebel. They thought he would know where you boys were. Him, and people who had things they wanted, they were just taken away.”

“Where?” Dean asked. Sam was listening in now, his hands shaking some. Lisa put a comforting hand on his back.

“Uh…reeducation camps. That’s what they call them.” Cassie explained. Dean paled some, wondering what they could be doing to his dad there. “I heard it’s at the old drive-in.” Dean nodded and motioned for Lisa and Sam, heading for the door. “Dean…” Dean stopped to look at her. “My dad…he’s dead. They killed him.”

“I’m so sorry Cassie.” Dean said. “We’ll fix this.” With that, Sam, Dean, and Lisa left the store and quickly made their way around to the back of the store where Ryan was waiting. There were a couple nice sized boxes full of goodies.

“Be careful you three.” Ryan said. Sam and Dean picked up the boxes. “There’s a hole in the fence over there that leads into a clump of trees. It’ll be the best way to get the supplies out of here.” He sighed. “But knowing you two hard headed bastards, you’re going to try to go see your dad, aren’t you?”

“Yeah.” Dean said.

“Then I’d suggest you stash your things.” Ryan said. “And be careful. Big brother is always watching.” With that, he headed back into the store. Dean and Sam looked at each other before taking the things through the hole in the fence that Ryan had mentioned and hiding them in a hollowed out tree.

“They’ll be safe here, right?” Lisa asked.

“Well, you could stay and watch them.” Dean suggested. Lisa shook her head and followed Dean back through the fence. “We’re going to the drive-in. We’re going to find dad.” Sam nodded and followed his brother’s lead.

****

There were large spotlights surrounding the camp, setting on guard towers with razor wire fence strung up between them. An anti-American propaganda film was playing on the large screen. There was a gap between two sets of fence, keeping the outside civilians separate from the prisoners in the camp. Sam, Dean, and Lisa slipped behind a group of people talking to their loved ones. Sam went to the fence.

“Mr. Pellegrino.” Sam said. The former teacher looked up at his student, a smile spreading on his face.

“Sam. Thank god. Are you okay?” Mark asked. Sam nodded.

“Yeah. A bunch of us escaped.” Sam explained. “Have you seen my dad?”

“John? Uh, give me a second.” Mark left the boys standing at the fence. Lisa was a little ways down from them, talking to a friend from work. Dean watched her for a second, watching the large tears falling down her face.

“Sammy? Dean?” John said, turning Dean’s attention back to the fence. John stood there, leaning against Mark for support.

“Dad.” Dean said softly. John grabbed onto the fence to hold himself up. His face was busted and bruised. He was a little skinnier than he had been before this had all happened, and it was obvious by the help he had to have from Sam’s teacher that he was having a hard time walking around. He was still wrapped up in his green jacket with the patches on it, and his hat was still firmly on his head.

“Don’t say anything. Just let me watch you.” John said, checking his boys over. Dean and Sam stood there, watching their dad. This man had taken care of them for all their lives, and at one point, Sam actually thought he was Superman. But here he was, broken and beaten in front of them. “I knew I was right. You two got out. They came around asking for you, saying that Sam had potential and they were worried Dean would cause problems. I couldn’t let them find you.”

“Dad…” Sam whimpered, sounding more like a child than he really was.

“I was so tough on both of you.” John said. “Making Dean take care of everything while I was off at work or at the bar. And I am so sorry that I failed you as a father.” He looked at Sam when he said that before turning his attention back to both boys. “I did things that made you mad, made you hate me at times, but I just want you to know that even when we were fighting, I still loved you. I still love you boys. Even with one going off to the Middle East and the other going to California. I love both of you so much.”

“We love you too dad.” Dean said, watching tears in his dad’s eyes. He had only seen that a handful of times. “What have they done to you dad?” John shook his head.

“Don’t worry about that.” John said. “Do you boys remember something that I used to tell you when we would go out deer hunting? Besides Sammy, quit giggling.” Sam had to smile a little at that memory. Being up in the deer stand and Dean would do things to make Sam laugh.

“Hunters don’t quit.” Dean said, remembering how many times he wanted to give up on a hunt, despite being hungry and needing the deer to eat. John nodded.

“So I don’t want you boys to give up. No matter what you hear. No matter what goes on. You boys do not give up. You do not give into these sons of bitches. Do you understand me?”

“Yes sir.” Sam and Dean said together.

“Remember when we would go to the park. And you wanted to be on the swings? And Sam was just so little and Dean always showed Sam how to kick his legs. And it was just a mess of untied shoes and frantic kicking to keep up?” Sam nodded, tears falling down his face. “And I would pick you up when you fell off.” 

“I remember.” Dean said.

“Well, I won’t be around to pick you up when you fall down. You two have to be there for each other, okay? Promise me.”

“I promise.” Sam said.

“Me too.” Dean added. John nodded, satisfied with his answer. He knew his time was drawing close. It was only a matter of time.

“You boys need to get going now. It’s too dangerous for you to stay much longer.” John said, memorizing his boys features one last time. “Watch out for each other.” Dean nodded. He was always watching out for Sam. He would never stop watching out for Sam. Wrapping an arm around Sam’s shoulder, Dean led his brother away from the fence. Lisa noticed and said goodbye to her friend before running to catch up with them. John watched his boys leave, a tear falling down his face.

“Do the world some good boys.” He said to the air.


	8. Chapter 8

They got their stashed supplies and their guns, getting ready to head back to the woods when Dean stopped. Sam looked at his brother, a little worried about what was going through his head. They couldn’t turn back and go to town, not now.

“Cain’s house is over there.” Dean said. “He always said if we ever needed anything, just stop on by.”

“Do you think that’s a good idea?” Lisa asked. “Shouldn’t we head back to camp?”

“I’m hoping he has some things he can spare for us.” He said. “Come on.” Sam and Lisa exchanged another look before following Dean to the house. Dean raised his hand to knock when the door was flung open and a gun was pointed at his face.

“Dean Winchester?” Cain asked.

“Girl Scouts. Wanna buy some cookies?” Dean said with a laugh. The gun lowered and Cain motioned the three inside.

“Boy, it’s good to see you.” Cain said, patting Dean on the back. “Samuel. And mystery lady.”

“That’s Lisa.” Dean explained. “She ended up with us out in the mountains.” Cain nodded and led them into the house.

“So that’s where you’ve been.” Cain said. A woman in Cain’s living room stood up then. Sam’s eyes lit up and he ran to her, giving her a hug.

“Ellen!” He said. Ellen wrapped her arms around him, giving him a big hugh.

“Sam.” She said. She pulled back from him. “Have you seen Jo?” Sam shook his head sadly. “Well, I’m just glad that you’re okay.” She looked up. “This must be Dean.”

“Yeah. Dean, this is Ellen. Jo’s mom. I used to mow her lawn for her and shovel her sidewalk.” Sam explained. Cain motioned for the three of them to sit down. Sam and Dean set on the couch by Ellen, Lisa took one chair and Cain took the other.

“How many did you save?” Cain asked.

“Uh, Caleb Padalecki, Fergus Crowley, Jimmy Murphy, Cas Novak, Bobby Singer, Rufus Turner, and us three.” Dean explained. Cain smiled. “We’re hiding out. We had to get supplies. We were low on everything.”

“We thought you boys would’ve hightailed it to Free America by now.” Ellen said. “You’re still in occupied territory.”

“We didn’t know.” Sam said. The batteries had died in the radio a week or two before, and they didn’t have any to replace it. There was so much going on around the group that they didn’t know.

“Like I said, we just came into town for supplies.” Dean added. “We haven’t talked or seen anybody from town up until today. Do you have any information that you give us to pass along to the guys.” Lisa listened carefully, wrapping her head around everything.

“You said you have Caleb Padalecki?” Ellen asked. Sam nodded. “Well, I’m afraid his daddy is dead. They killed him due to all the missing inventory from his store. He was in the camp for about two weeks before they killed him and Martin Robinson.”

“Oh my god.” Lisa gasped. Sam stared down at the floor. Dean wrapped an arm around his brother.

“It wasn’t your fault Sammy. I’m the one that listened to Rick and took all that stuff.” Dean looked over at Lisa. “It’s not either of your faults.”

“What are we going to tell Caleb?” Lisa asked, her voice barely a whisper. Dean set there quietly. He was going to have to pull Caleb aside and tell him that his dad was dead because of them.

“I’ll figure it out.” Dean said softly. He couldn’t believe that Rick was gone. So was Martin. How many other people had they killed while the boys had been gone? And how easy would it be to get Sam out of Calumet and into Free America?

The room stayed silent for a while, each person trying to think of what to do next, what to say, where to turn. Finally, Cain spoke up.

“Well, I could spare some extra things. But I need something in exchange.” Cain told them. Sam looked at Dean, wondering what he meant. Dean knew Cain better than Sam did. He had spent a lot of time there helping Cain with the horses on the farm and doing random maintenance when he needed a break from John.

“And what’s that?” Dean asked. Cain stood up and Ellen’s eyes widened.

“Cain, I know what you’re thinking. Are you sure this is a good idea?” She asked. Cain just waved her off and headed into another room, Dean following along behind him. Sam and Lisa trailed behind Dean, with Ellen standing back some.

Cain went to a door in the floor, made out of wooden planks. He opened the door to show two girls. Both girls had a headful of blonde hair, but it was obviously dyed due to the dark roots coming through. They blinked at the bright light coming through into their hiding hole. Sam gasped softly. He knew these girls from school. They were both younger than him but he knew them.

“These are my nieces.” Cain explained. “They spent two days sneaking through enemy territory to get here. Now I want you to take them to your hideout.” He looked down into their spot. “Ruby. Meg. This is Sam and Dean Winchester. They are good guys. They’ll keep you safe.”

Sam offered a hand to Ruby to help her out of their hiding spot while Dean helped Meg. Both girls looked tired and scared, but angry as hell at the world. Not that either of the boys could blame them. They didn’t know what kind of hell the two girls had been through. Meg was the older of the two, just a year behind Jared, and he could tell by the way that she stood in front of Ruby, that she was just as protective as Dean was of Sam.

“Are you sure?” Meg asked, looking Dean and Sam up and down. She looked over at Lisa. “Who’s that?”

“I’m Lisa.” The older woman said softly. “You’ll be safe with us, I promise.” Meg looked back at Ruby, who nodded.

“Fine.” She said. “But be warned, we’re really good with knives.” Dean had to smirk some. She was spunky, that was for sure.

“We need to get going.” Dean said. Ruby looked back at Cain. He pulled her into a tight hug.

“You be safe out there Ruby.” Cain said, hugging his niece.

“You too Uncle Cain.” Ruby mumbled. Cain hugged Meg next, telling her the same that he had told Ruby. Finally, he let his nieces go, having them walk over to the Winchester’s and Lisa.

“I don’t want to know where they are, just in case.” Cain explained.

“Understood.” Dean said, nodding.

“Sam?” Ellen said softly. Sam looked up at her. “If you find Jo, tell her I love her, okay?” Sam nodded.

“Of course Ellen.” She pulled Sam in for a hug. Cain went into the house and came back out with a few backpacks full of supplies. Meg, Ruby, and Lisa slipped them on while Sam and Dean grabbed their stashed boxes.

“If you need anything at all, you come here.” Cain explained. “But hopefully, you’ll get the hell out of dodge soon enough.” Ellen stood beside him, nodding. She was there because she had been in the wrong place at the wrong time. She couldn’t run, especially not without Jo, but these kids could and they needed to leave.

“Come on, let’s go.” Dean said, leading Sam and the girls away from Cain’s place. Ellen waved goodbye to them as they walked, Cain watching silently as his family escaped towards freedom.

****

They made their way back into camp. Crowley stood up, gun pointed at them. He was ready for a fight, until he saw it was only the Winchester’s. He was about to lower the gun when he noticed the two girls trailing behind the boys.

“Who are they?” Crowley asked. The other boys stood behind him, watching the girls. They had a fire going and had been telling good old day stories, but now that was all forgotten. Dean looked back at the girls. Sam and Lisa took the supplies over to their storeroom.

“This is Meg and Ruby.” Dean explained. “Sam said you guys went to school with them. They’re nieces of a friend of mine. He asked me to bring them here. To keep them safe.” Crowley lowered his gun and sighed.

“Just more mouths to feed.” Rufus grumbled to himself as he went to help take inventory. Dean looked at Ruby and Meg.

“Make yourselves at home. It’s not the Hilton, but it’s safe.” Dean explained. Meg nodded and led Ruby over to where Lisa was. Dean sighed and ran a hand down his face.

“So, did you find anything out while you were out?” Bobby asked. “Anything new?”

“Yeah, quite a bit.” Dean said. He looked over at Caleb. “Hey Caleb, can I talk to you for a second?”


	9. Chapter 9

It was quiet the next morning as Sam pulled the old batteries out of the radio and replaced them with ones they had gotten from Ryan and Cassie. It had been a rough night for everyone. Caleb had hid himself away and cried most at the night at the loss of his dad and the possible loss of his mom too. Ruby and Meg were trying to adjust to their new home, but it was hard and Meg was constantly on edge to keep her little sister safe. Dean had walked off into the woods for the night, leaving Sam in charge of a bunch of scared, displaced kids.

“Morning Sam.” Lisa said, walking to the fire that Sam had going. “We’re low on water. We’ll have to get some today.”

“Yeah I was going to head that way in a little bit.” Sam sighed. He hoped that Dean came back soon, but he knew that his brother felt guilty for Rick’s death. Lisa set on a log by Sam and watched him.

“Anything?” She asked. Sam was about to answer when a cheery voice came from the speakers.

“And for a few words for our brothers and sisters in the occupied territory. The chair is against the wall. The chair is against the wall.” The voice said before disappearing into some Creedence Clearwater Revival. Crowley came over to the campfire then.

“I always wanted to go to Woodstock.” He yawned. “Do we have any coffee or anything?”

“We need water for coffee.” Lisa said. Sam groaned and stood up.

“I’ll be back.” He sighed. He grabbed the milk jugs they used to carry water. Thankfully, there was a good supply of water nearby and they would boil it before they drank it, just in case. Sam sighed and headed to the lake, surprised to see Dean sitting on the bank.

“Dean?” Sam asked, walking over to the lake. Dean looked up and saw his brother.

“Hey Sammy. What are you doing?” He asked.

“Uh, they said we needed water.” Sam said, starting to fill the containers. Dean went over to help him. “Have you been here all night?”

“Yeah.” Dean said, rubbing the back of his head absentmindedly. “I just needed a moment to myself.” Sam nodded and finished filling one, securing the lid tightly on it before moving to the next one. “They too lazy to come get it themselves?”

“I wasn’t going to wake Caleb up. He didn’t exactly sleep well last night. And Crowley isn’t the right person to ask to do a task.” Sam explained. “And the others…I just want to try to make them as comfortable as possible.” Dean nodded. He looked around then.

“Sammy, where’s your gun?” Dean asked. Sam silently cursed to himself. He knew he had forgotten something. He had been on a mission and completely forgot it back at the camp. When Sam didn’t answer, Dean growled some. “Are you kidding me? We’re in the middle of a fucking war and you forgot your damn gun?”

“Don’t start with me Dean.” Sam sneered at his brother. “Just back the fuck off.”

“Such big words coming from a kid.” Dean taunted. Sam was trying to keep his cool, but he knew that if he stayed there, he would end up trying to hit Dean. And Dean had a whole hell of a lot more fight training than Sam did.

“Oh just fuck off.” Sam said, gathering up the water containers. He carried them all back to camp, not bothering to look back to see if Dean was close behind him. Lisa looked at Sam as he came back to the fire. He noticed by the look on her face that something wasn’t right.

“Rufus and Bobby were doing morning patrol.” She explained. “They saw a truck heading up this way. About a minute ago.” Sam nodded and set the water down and picked up his gun. He turned to see Dean standing there.

“Did they say anything else?” Dean asked. Lisa shook her head. Dean grabbed some arrows from a bag of things that they had found in forest. “They’ll probably be out here looking for Native American artifacts. We’ll give it to them.” He grabbed some mud to cake on the arrows to make them look old. “Let’s put all that training to good use, shall we?”

****

Ruby hid at the edge of a hill, watching the soldiers joke around like they didn’t have a care in the world. She gripped her knife tighter. She had volunteered to do this, Dean was going to make Bobby, Rufus, or Cas do it. She had so much pent up anger that she needed to do this. She knew Meg was watching from the trees, and Caleb was just a few feet away from her. He wanted some revenge, and of course Dean was going to give it to him.

“Look.” One of the soldiers said. “This must have been left over relics or something.” He picked up the arrow. He looked out over the hill, looking for more of the arrows when Ruby’s foot slipped and she slid down the side of the hill. Caleb cursed to himself and went for her as the soldiers did as well.

“Hey you son of a bitch!” Lisa called out, pointing her gun at him and firing. The man that had a hold of Ruby cried out and let go. Meg ran over and kicked him in the face, knocking him down the hill with sickening thuds. The sound of guns going off in the distance made Lisa look over. She could see Dean, Sam, and some of the other fighting off their own soldiers. 

“Are you okay?” Meg asked Ruby, trying to distract her from everything going on around them. There was a loud bang before Dean was walking over towards them, his eyes cold.

“He was just a kid.” He mumbled to himself. “Those bastards.”

****

They all gathered around the fire that night. Caleb was working hard at sawing off the shotgun he had, trying to keep his focus on anything else. Cas had his knees pulled up to his chest, staring at the fire. He shook a little.

“We killed people.” He said. Everyone stopped talking and looked up at him. The only noise was Caleb still sawing at the gun in his hand. “They were people.”

“Yeah, and they killed my dad.” Caleb growled. “So I say we kills some evil sons of bitches and we raise a little hell.” 

“One things for sure,” Jimmy said, looking everyone in the eye. “We can never go home again.” Caleb’s sawing slowed then. Sam saw a tear fall down his cheek before he shook his head. Dean put a hand on Sam’s shoulder. He saw Meg wrapping a protective arm around her sister.

No one really talked for the rest of the night.


	10. Chapter 10

Meg was settled on a rock, gun in hand, as she watched the sky. She was trying to keep track of planes, to see if there were more of the good guys in the sky or not. She wanted to go home. She wanted her sister to go home. She missed her family. She didn’t mind the boys and Lisa, but they weren’t their parents or their uncle. Several times, she had thought about taking Ruby and making a run for it, but there’s no way they could make it the forty or more miles to the free zone on their own. There was just no way.

She was pulled out of her thoughts then by the loud noise of a plane crashing in the distance. She stood up quickly trying to see if she could find the crash site. She looked up at the sky then to see a parachute with a body attached to it. She closed her eyes for a second before she took off to where the parachute was headed. It was windy, throwing the guy attached to it around. Meg took off towards it, glad that she had convinced Lisa to cut her hair for her so it wasn’t blowing in her face.

She quietly made her way over to the man she saw on the ground, pieces of his aircraft laying in a path around him. He was wrapped up in his parachute and looked like he was knocked out, but Meg knew that wasn’t always the case with people. She crept over, gun ready, and she noticed the small movement of his body that proved her wasn’t asleep. She smirked some. The guy was smart, she could give him that. Play dead until the enemy walked by. He reached out for his gun then, but Meg was faster, stepping on his hint.

“Damn it!” The man growled, a deep Louisiana accent audible. 

“Well, your accent says you’re American, but I’m not sure I can trust you.” Meg said, gun pointed at his face.

“Believe what you want sweetheart.” The man laughed. Meg gripped the gun tightly, fighting the urge to use to butt on his face. “I’m red blood, born and raised.”

“Well, if you’re so American, what’s the capitol of Texas?” Meg asked. She noticed the gash on his forehead, knowing he probably had a head injury. The man laid there for a second, trying to figure out the right answer.

“Austin.” He finally said. Meg frowned.

“Wrong asshole.” She said. “It’s Houston.” The man pushed the barrel out of his face.

“Darlin’, it’s cold. And I just got shot out of my plane. Give me a break.” Meg took the pistol from him that he had been reaching for. “You’ve seen too many movies.” The man said, watching her.

“Yeah, but they’ve all been worth it.” She said, offering her hand out to him. “You hungry? I’m sure Fearless Leader would like to meet you.” The man took her offered hand and let her help him to his feet.

“I could go for something.” He chuckled. Meg smirked and led him back to the camp where the boys were sitting around the fire. Snow had been falling on and off all day. The ground wasn’t cold enough yet to let it accumulate, but they knew it would be soon. Sam was telling a story to the guys, getting laughs out of them, when Ruby stood up suddenly.

“Meg!” She called out, seeing the guy trailing along behind her. The man raised his hands up.

“Easy Ruby.” Meg said. “He’s not here to hurt us.” Dean walked out of the group of trees then and stopped when he saw the new man. A smirk spread on his face.

“You damn son of a bitch. Where’s my forty bucks?” Dean asked, making everyone look at him before turning their attention back to the man, who was laughing.

“Oh damn, I left it in my other flight suit. I’ll catch ya next time, okay?” He asked. Dean walked forward and hugged the man.

“It’s good to see you Benny.” Dean said, patting his shoulder.

“Likewise Winchester.” Benny chuckled. “It’s been awhile. Since Georgia, right?”

“Yeah.” Dean said. He turned to see everyone watching them. “I met Benny back when I was at Fort Benning. If I remember right, you were getting your ass handed to you?” Dean laughed. Benny rolled his eyes.

“I think that was you. Hustling Marines? Not very smart of you. But, grunts don’t make the big bucks to think, do they?” Benny laughed. Dean shook his head and walked over towards Sam.

“You hungry? I think we have some food still left over.” Dean said. “I’ll do introductions and we’ll get you warmed up and some food in you.” Benny nodded and followed Dean. Crowley leaned over toward Lisa.

“He’s taking this mouth to feed better than he took Ruby and Meg.” Crowley said. Lisa nodded, but words weren’t working with her. She kept staring at Benny. 

“So that’s Crowley and Lisa.” Dean said, walking Benny past them. Crowley was sure that Lisa’s eyes had turned into hearts as she watched him. “And over there is Caleb, Jimmy, Cas, Bobby, and Rufus.” Dean explained. “You met Meg already, and that’s her sister Ruby.”

“Pleasure.” Benny said, smiling at the two girls.

“And this is my brother Sam.” Dean said, motioning to his brother.

“Ah. This is the famous Sam Winchester. It’s great to finally meet you.” Benny said, making Sam’s cheek heat up a little. “Your brother talked an awful lot about you.”

“I had a feeling he did.” Sam sighed. He didn’t want to know what his brother had said about him, but it was kinda nice knowing that he hadn’t slipped his brothers mind while he was gone. Because Dean never left Sam’s.

“Well, that’s everyone.” Dean told Benny. Benny nodded and took a seat by Sam while Dean went for food. He came back a moment later and Benny started to eat, looking up to see the ground slowly walking over, unsure if they should bother him or not.

“I assume you want news about what’s going on out there.” Benny said. Everyone looked at each other before slowly nodding. “Well, come sit by the fire and let me tell you a story then.” Everyone slowly set down. Benny watched them all, seeing scared little kids instead of ruthless soldiers. “It’s North Korea. They finally got fed up with us. They were able to plunge most, if not all, of the country into darkness. They bombed the shit out of D.C., New York, Miami, LA, and other major cities. They set up their forces in the middle of the country, feeling they would be safer here.” Benny explained.

“Oh my god.” Ruby gasped. Meg rested a hand on her shoulder.

“The military has set up the Free America Army. I was on my way back to base when I was shot down. We’re fighting hard, and thanks to you guys, it’s a little easier.” Benny explained.

“Thanks to us?” Sam asked. Benny nodded.

“There have been stories going through the ranks about a militia group called the Hunters. Of course, a lot of them are exaggerated. But it’s great to finally meet the American folk heroes.” Benny took a big bite of his food. The kids were all in silence until Dean spoke up.

“We’ll let Benny rest for a little bit, then I think we should take him on a run and show him how it’s done.” Dean said. Benny just smirked at him.

“When do we start?”


	11. Chapter 11

It was Dean’s idea to do recon. He wanted to show Benny what they were up against and he had heard that there was some sort of convoy on the edge of town. They had been working on taking out as many of the enemy as they could get their hands on. They were learning tricks and traps, using Lisa, Meg, and Ruby to draw them out. Meg and Ruby were really good with knives, and Lisa was holding her own with a gun, but they really wanted to keep her safe because she was the one who knew how to stitch them up properly. But now it was time for Benny to see just how good they were, and how much they could handle.

At least that’s what Dean had hoped for.

That’s how they ended up just outside of town, hidden among broken down vehicles and brush. They could see a group of people stand away from them, guns trained on them. They could see some men digging holes in the ground. Cas gasped.

“That’s Mr. Pellegrino.” He said. Sam’s eyes scanned the group of people. He froze once he saw one of them, his hand going out and grabbing Dean’s arm.

“What is it?” Dean whispered. Sam just kept staring ahead. Dean turned to see what he was seeing and his own eyes widened.

Because there in the group of people stood John Winchester.

“Everything okay?” Benny whispered when he saw the frightened look on the youngest Winchester’s face, but Sam just seemed to ignore him.

“We have to help him.” Sam said to his brother. “We have to save him.”

“If we go out there, we’re all dead.” Dean said. He had planned on an ambush, but there were just too many people with too many guns. They had taken out a group like this a few days back, so it was obvious they were taking precautions now. The Hunters were well known around these parts. Saving people and all that jazz. But this, this wasn’t something that the Hunters could stop. 

They watched as Mr. Pellegrino dropped the shovel he had been holding and took John’s hand to be pulled to his feet. They both looked tired and dirty. They were bruised up and Mr. Pellegrino couldn’t move his left arm. There were caskets in the distance for fallen members of the enemy the Hunters had taken out over the past days. These men and women were digging their graves. Sam just hoped that was all that was going to happen.

A group of people that Sam, Dean, and pretty much everyone except Benny, had seen their entire lives stood in a row, being forced to watch the funeral for soldiers they could care less about. Dean felt Sam tremble and laid a hand on his back to calm him. Caleb wanted revenge, but he just gripped his gun. Cas set by Benny, watching. Everyone else was waiting at camp, just in case.

It was silent after the gun salute. No one said a thing. There were a group of civilians that had been forced to bear witness to the funeral, but not one of them wept for the men they were burying. Mr. Pellegrino looked around before taking a deep breath. He knew this was going to end in his death, but they had already killed everything else.

“Because the flag still stands for freedom, and you can’t take that away!” He belted out. The others looked at him like he was crazy before joining him in the song.

“And I’m proud to be an American, where at least I know I’m free!” They all sang, John included. “And I won’t forget the men who died…”

The man in charge waved his hand and the soldiers opened fire on the group of people, killing them. Sam gasped and covered his mouth. Dean’s eyes widened. Benny and Cast looked at each other. A tear fell down Caleb’s face.

The convoy dispersed quickly, leaving the Hunters hiding in the brush. Once they were sure that they were gone, they all set up. Sam looked shell shocked. Dean reached out to put a hand on his shoulder. Sam looked up at him, but instead of saying anything, he took the pistol that Dean had laid down and stood up.

“I…” He didn’t finish his sentence before he took off running.

“Sammy!” Dean screamed. Caleb waved him off.

“I’ll go with him. Get Benny back to camp.” Caleb took off after Sam. Dean set there with Cas and Benny, watching as his brother ran off. Probably with a mind set on revenge.

“Let’s go.” He said. “We’ll patrol the forest.”

****

Sam walked into Calumet with all the plans that he was going to go on a killing spree to avenge his dad, Caleb’s dad, everyone that had been killed. He knew Caleb was right behind him, ready to drag him back before he could do anything stupid. But he knew this was something he had to do.

“Caleb…” Sam growled. Caleb held his hands up.

“I’m just here to make sure you don’t get yourself killed.” Caleb said. Sam nodded and made his way towards the headquarters of the bastards…when something caught his eye. Two girls standing along the side of the road. Both blondes, both beautiful, but only one of them had his heart. He left the pistol where he had put it along the small of his back and made his way over to them.

“Jessica…” Sam whispered. She turned to look at him and a big smile spread on her face.

“Sam!” She wrapped her arms around him.

“Jo.” Caleb said. Jo smiled and hugged Caleb.

“Come on. We have to get out of here.” Sam said. Jessica looked at the boys.

“They’re watching us.” She said. Sam shook his head.

“I don’t care. We’re getting out of here. Come on.” Sam and Caleb led the way, Jo and Jessica right behind them. An angry voice shouted in the distance. “Run!” Sam and Caleb took off. Jo was close behind, but Jessica wasn’t as fast. A loud bang echoed out then. Sam turned around to see Jessica just standing there.

“Jessica?! Come on!” Caleb said. She looked down at her chest where a red spot was starting to blossom. Sam’s eyes widened.

“NO!” He screamed. “JESS! JESSICA!” He went to run back to her as she fell to the ground, but Caleb held on to him.

“We have to go! It’s too late!” He yelled at Sam, pulling him away from his fallen girlfriend. Jo helped him and soon, the three were heading back to the camp.

****

“Oh my god.” Lisa gasped as Sam, Caleb, and Jo made their way into the camp. She jumped up and ran to Jo. “Are you okay? Where’s Jessica?” She knew Jo and Jessica were best friends. But when Jo just buried her head in Lisa’s shoulder and started to cry, she knew something was wrong.

“Sam…” Caleb said, trying to stop his friend. But Sam just walked to one of the caves they were living in. He wanted to ignore everyone. He wanted the world to end, because his just had.

“Caleb, what happened?” Lisa asked, holding a crying Jo in her arms. Crowley, Jimmy, Bobby, Rufus, Meg, and Ruby all watched him, wanting to know why Sam was so quiet and Jo was crying so loudly.

“We went into Calumet and we found Jo and Jessica,” Caleb explained. “And…they shot her.” He didn’t even have to say who the girl was. Everyone knew. Lisa held on tight to Jo as tears fell down both of their faces. There was a rustling noise then. Rufus and Bobby stood to protect the group, guns ready, but it was just Dean, Cas, and Benny.

“Caleb?” Cas asked. Dean didn’t seem to notice the tears. If Caleb was here that meant Sam was here. There wasn’t a chance in hell that Caleb would come back here without his brother.

“Where is he?” Dean asked, gripping his gun in anger.

“Dean wait…” Caleb started to say.

“Where. Is. He?” Dean asked again. Caleb pointed to the cave Sam had disappeared into. Leaving the ground, Dean stomped into the cave. He saw the huddled form of Sam sitting in the corner. “What the fuck do you think you were doing Sam?” He got no answer and Sam didn’t turn to look at him. “Samuel Winchester, look at me when I’m talking to you!”

Sam turned around slowly and looked at his brother. His eyes were red and blotchy from crying, he was shaking, and he was trying his hardest to keep his lunch down. Dean’s anger started to fizzle away as he walked toward his brother.

“Sammy, what happened?” Dean asked. Sam wiped at his face.

“They…they killed her.” Sam whispered. Dean set down by his Sam and pulled him into a tight hug. “Dad and Jess…” Fresh tears fell down his face.

“It’s okay Sammy.” Dean said softly. He rubbed his arm softly. “I’m not going anywhere.”

“But you have.” Sam said, looking up at Dean. “You kept talking about me wanting to run off to California but you ran off first. You left me when I needed you.”

“You had dad…” Dean started to say. Sam shook his head. “What?”

“Dad was barely ever home.” Sam said. “He worked a lot, went out with his friends, did anything he could not to look at me. I got myself suspended four times trying to get him to just notice me, but it didn’t work. So, I thought maybe if I ran off too, it would.”

“Sammy…”

“Sometimes he would look at me like I was the reason mom died. I know it was my fault, but…” Dean cut him off.

“How was that your fault Sammy? You were only six months old!” Dean said.

“If…if I wouldn’t have had a fever, mom would’ve never been in the car taking me to the doctor. That man would’ve hit someone else. He would’ve killed someone else.” Sam said. “I had to be sick though.”

“You forget that you almost died too Sam.” Dean told him. “I remember dad being so scared that he was going to lose you too. I don’t remember everything about being at the hospital, but I do remember the first time we got to hold you without the machines around you. Dad put you in my arms and told me that it was my job to protect you. So I thought that doing what I do would keep you safe.”

“Dean…”

“Sammy, I promise I’m not going to let anything happen to you. And I’m not leaving again.” He pulled Sam to him again.

****

Lisa had went to the cave to make sure Dean hadn’t killed Sam, but seeing she wasn’t needed, she retreated and set alone by a tree. Jo had all the boys trying to calm her down. She didn’t know what the girl had been through while she was in Calumet. Lisa closed her eyes for a second, trying not to picture what they had done to her cousin and her friend.

“You okay?” Benny asked, sitting down by her. She sighed.

“No. Not really.” She said softly. “This whole thing is fucked up and I just want to go home.” Benny nodded.

“I saw you with Dean earlier. You were gazing and he was oblivious. Either he’s your inattentive boy, or you’re pining.” 

“He’s not my boy.” She said. “And I’m not sure I even stand a chance to win his affection.”

“And why’s that?” He asked. She looked up at him.

“Because I’m not Sam.” She replied. “Sam always comes first in Dean’s eyes, and while I understand that, I don’t think I could handle it.” Benny nodded and wrapped an arm around Lisa.

“Maybe I can help then?” He asked. She nodded.

“Yeah, I think you can.” She said, standing up. This way, she would either make Dean jealous or he wouldn’t even care at all. She figured it was probably the second one. Benny wrapped an arm around her waist. She knew she was probably just an easy lay and she was the only female here that wasn’t in high school, but she wasn’t going to let the feelings get in the way. She had done that with Dean. She wouldn’t do that again.


	12. Chapter 12

Dean and Sam had fallen asleep in the cave the night before. No one had bothered them, just like no one had bothered Caleb when he found out his dad had died. But Dean had woke up that next morning with no sign of Sam in the cave. He set up quickly, looking around. Maybe Sam was just out taking a piss? Maybe he was hungry? But it didn’t matter because Dean’s big brother mode had already activated and could not stop until he saw him with his own eyes.

He grabbed his gun and left the cave. He saw Benny and Lisa curled up around each other and he rolled his eyes. Of course. He wanted to wake them up to watch the embarrassment in their eyes when they realized they fell asleep with each other, but he decided not to. He wanted to find Sam instead. He made his way towards some boulders that set at the edge of the forest, where they would sit to keep watch. Sam was perched there, knife carving at the stone. Dean stood there, watching his brother. He had carved names into the rock. Martin Robinson, Rick Padalecki, Mark Pellegrino, Jessica Moore, and John Winchester. A wall of memory.

“Morning Sammy.” Dean said, walking towards his brother. Sam set back and wiped at his forehead before stowing his knife. “You didn’t wake me up.”

“You were sleeping really good for the first time in weeks.” Sam said. Dean ran a hand over the rock with the names etched into it. “Surprise.”

“This is really good Sammy.” Dean said. “They all deserve to have their names up here.”

“That way, in case we…” Dean looked up at him.

“I’m getting you out of this.” Dean explained. “You’re going to go on and tell our story to anyone who will listen. But this is still a good reminder of what we’re fighting for.” Sam nodded. “Come on. I’m gonna try to make some deer meat bacon.” Sam smiled and slid down off the rock. He followed Dean back to camp where the others were starting to wake up. Lisa and Benny looked up at Dean walked past.

“Looks like you made a new friend.” He chuckled with a wink. Lisa’s face reddened. Benny chuckled.

“That I did Dean.” He laughed. Dean rolled his eyes some and went to work on making breakfast. Crowley set down by the fire, holding his hands out to it.

“We found their bunkers.” Crowley said. “There’s a handful of planes and housing for soldiers just a little ways north east of here.”

“Good.” Dean said. “With Benny here, I think we have a really good shot of destroying as many of their planes as we can. We have all the gear we’ve taken from their soldiers. Grenades and guns. We can make a plan and such.” Everyone nodded. Sam disappeared to where the weapons were. He came back a second later.

“I got this off of the last guys we fought. I thought you would appreciate Dean.” He said. He handed Dean a large, black gun. Dean’s eyes lit up and his smile widened. Benny stood by him, eyes wide.

“Is that a grenade launcher?” Benny asked. Dean nodded.

“Yeah it is.” He laughed. “And she’s all mine now.”

****

“All prisoners are required to stay in the light.” They heard the recorded say. “Do not attempt to hide. All prisoner are required to…” Dean couldn’t deal with it anymore. With a smile, he aimed the launcher at a guard tower with speakers attached to it and fired. The words stopped instantly and people gasped as they watched. In the middle of the planes and barracks was a POW camp. He smiled as a truck barreled through the razor wire fence.

“Come on! Move!” Benny called out to the others. The Hunters all jumped out of truck, guns in hand. Sam watched one man run towards a tent, screaming “The Hunters! The Hunters!” over and over again. Dean launched a grenade at the tent then, causing all of the soldiers inside to run out. That made it open season for Jo, Meg, and Ruby, who all were pretty good shots.

Jimmy started passing out guns to prisoners as they ran up toward the truck to seek escape. They took them without question and started following the others lead, shooting the men who had held them prisoner. They revolted and Dean couldn’t help but smile as he watched them. He just wished they would’ve gotten there before the last shooting…

Caleb and Benny took to throwing explosives in vehicles to stop them from being used. Benny got to use the middle finger quite a bit, which made Caleb smile like no other. He was glad revenge was being dished out. He gripped his gun tighter and fired at anyone who wasn’t a friend. Benny hated to admit it, but that kid was probably well suited for military training when this was all done and over with.

“Come on!” Bobby called out to the other Hunters. “Let’s go!” They all ran for the truck and jumped up into it as Bobby took off. They set in the back of the car as they compound exploded, the prisoners all free from it.

“Hunters!” Rufus called out, raising his fist in the air in victory.

“Hunters!” The other cheered out.

****

It was a rare sunny morning the next day. Lisa, Jo, Ruby, and Meg set up on the rocks watching as the boys played with a football. Even Sam was playing, and he really had no interest in football. That’s why when John suggested joining a sport back in elementary school, Sam took up soccer and never looked back. Benny kept sending smiles and winks over to Lisa as he played, claiming she was his good luck charm.

“You guys really should’ve been on the football team.” Benny laughed.

“Soccer.” Sam said, raising his hand.

“Delinquent.” Crowley added.

“Don’t really care.” Bobby and Rufus said at the same time.

“Had to help dad at the store.” Caleb said, cringing a little. 

“Watched plenty of it. Didn’t need to play.” Jimmy laughed.

“I’m just a nerd and would be slaughtered on a football field.” Cas explained. Benny laughed loudly, smiling at the boys. He hadn’t laughed in a while and he could that they hadn’t either.

“And what about you Dean-o. Did you play a little pigskin in high school?” Benny asked. Dean shook his head.

“Nah, I had more important things to do.” Dean said.

“Like what?” Benny asked. Dean glanced over at Sam. He hadn’t been able to play sports because he had to take care of Sam. He had to be there to cheer Sam on, because lord knows that John wouldn’t have ever remembered to go.

“Rebuilding my baby. Hanging out with Cassie Robinson, Carmen Porter, and Bela Talbot under the bleachers during said football games.” Dean laughed. Benny stared at him.

“At the same time?” He asked. Dean chuckled.

“Some things just need to stay secret Benny.” Dean laughed. Benny whistled. It was almost Christmas. They could feel it in the air. Normally, they would’ve all been jumping for joy at the thought of new game systems or gift cards, but this year, the only thing they wanted was to go home and everything to have been a bad dream.

Instead, a few nights later, with Christmas music playing from the boom box, they passed around bottles of beer and whiskey as they set around the fire. Christmas dinner was some meat that Cain had sent their way when Dean went to visit. There were no presents, no tree, no ugly Christmas sweaters, nothing like that. And they were all okay with it. Because they were all alive and that’s all that mattered. They could have more Christmas’s once this whole thing was done and over with and they had won.

“And for the Hunters out there, if you have your ears on, help is on the way.” The woman said before putting on an Elvis song. Everyone looked at each other. They had been promised help in the past. Yeah, they had Benny, but he was just one man.

“I’m tired of promises they can’t keep.” Dean whispered. “But we’ll fight like hell to see if they’ll make good on this one.” Everyone stayed quiet for a while until Cas went to the Impala and pulled out the guitar that he had taken from Rick’s.

“Anyone know how to play?” He asked. Dean sighed and raised his hand. Sam looked at him.

“What? The chicks dig it.” He said with a shrug. Sam rolled his eyes but was honestly a little excited to hear his brother play. Dean took it and strummed it a couple time before he started to play a song that many of them knew.

“Mama told me, when I was young…”


	13. Chapter 13

There was a thick layer of snow on the ground. It had been a strangely warm winter up until this point. The Hunters were hiding behind trees and rocks. The sound of planes overhead was almost overwhelming. Sam wanted to cover his ears a few times, but that would mean setting his gun down and facing the wrath of Dean.

“It’s ours!” Cas called out, smiling up at plane that flew over.

“How can you tell?” Crowley asked.

“It’s ours.” Benny and Dean said at the same time.

“Old married couple.” Ruby mumbled under her breath.

“Fry ‘em.” Benny growled. Just then, the plane that flew over dropped bombs on strongholds. Dean’s smile grew as he watched it unfolding. Fire and explosions.

“Dear god.” Jimmy said, watching all of the bombs going off.

“And we’re going over there?” Bobby asked. Benny nodded.

“Welcome to war kiddos.” He said. Dean looked over at Sam. He never wanted him to be in this position. He never wanted him to see the horrors of war. To see someone as your friend but they turn out to be your enemy, or your enemy is actually your friend. There were so many things in the world that Dean didn’t want Sam to see, and most of them involved the world that they were living in. That’s when there was a noise to the left of the group.

“Son of a bitch!” Dean called out. “Move!” A large tank headed their way. Everyone took off running from their hiding spots. Weapons in hand, Dean and Benny led all of them to a snowbank. “Get down!” He ordered. They all dove behind the snow, watching the tank come closer before it stopped right in front of them. But it wasn’t there for them. It was there to fire at the Freedom Fighters that were down below. Another tank showed up then, parking just down from the other one.

“What are we going to do?” Rufus whispered to Bobby over the tank fire.

“You think I know?” Bobby asked. Caleb looked down at his gun as the tanks kept firing. He reached over towards Benny and snagged two explosives from his bag.

“Hey!” Benny said. Caleb climbed up the snowhill.

“Get out of here.” Caleb said, ignoring the boys and girls trying to grab at his ankles to stop him.

“Give him cover!” Benny said. The kids raised their guns and started firing, trying to help Caleb out and to get him back down towards them. Dean fired the grenade launcher at the tank across from them, hitting the target. It knocked the gunman off his post. But as he fell, he let off a shot, hitting Caleb in the stomach.

“CALEB!” Meg screamed. She had grown close to him. Sam’s eyes widened as he watched his friend slump against the tank he was standing on. Jimmy screamed out and shot at the gunman over and over, hitting him several times. He kept screaming even after he had run out and the gunman had fallen to the ground, red snow surrounding him. The tank that Dean had hit with the grenade was on fire. Anyone that was in there was gone.

“Caleb, get down here!” Bobby begged. Caleb shook his head, holding where the bullet wound was.

“I have to do this.” He groaned. He grabbed the explosive he had taken from Benny. He pulled the pin and tossed it through the hatch for the tank. He rested against the hatch, a smile on his face. “Fuck. You.” He said right before the explosive went off. He fell off the tank onto the ground. Meg ran to him.

“Caleb?” She said, shaking him gently. Lisa ran over and touched the side of his neck. She shook her head.

“I’m sorry.” She said. Dean turned away, unable to look down at the young man on the ground.

“We have to get out of here.” Benny said. “Back to our safe hold.”

“We can’t just leave him here.” Meg cried, large tears falling down her face. Ruby put a hand on her sister’s shoulder.

“Come on Meg.” Ruby said softly. Jo helped her to pulled Meg away from Caleb’s body.

“Should we take him with us?” Sam whispered. Dean looked over at Sam as more bombs exploded to the side of them.

“We have to go Sammy.” Dean told him. Sam nodded and turned away, heading back toward their hidden camp, tears in his eyes.

****

Meg was crying as they set around the fire, getting warm and trying to calm down after what they had just seen. Sam got up with his knife and headed out to their memorial rock, carving Caleb’s name into it beside Rick’s name. All these deaths were starting to catch up with him. His dad had been his only parent since he was six months old. Jessica had been the love of his life since she moved in 6th grade and almost broke Sam’s nose during dodgeball. He had been friends with Caleb since first grade when one of the mean third graders tried to steal Sam’s lunch. Dean wasn’t there to protect Sam like he always did, but Caleb was and he knew how to tackle and hit.

Sam cried for a minute or two while he set up at the rock, but soon it disappeared to anger. He was mad at Caleb for running off into danger like that. He was mad at whatever force that was up above for not keeping him safe, keeping them all safe. He was mad at Benny for leading them out there in the first place. He was mad at Dean for agreeing with him and for leaving Caleb behind. Sam balled up his fist and hit the rock over and over until it was so painful that the cold air hitting it made all the nerves in his body scream out in agony. He slid down onto the snow, leaning up against the rock and cradling his injured hand against his chest.

“Sam?” Dean called out. Sam didn’t realize how long he had been at the rock, but it had been longer than he had intended. Dean saw his brother sitting against the rock and came over. Then he saw the blood that had dripped on the snow from his hand. “Sammy! Are you hurt?”

“I’m fine.” Sam assured him. But the grimace when Dean knelt in front of him and gently took his hand gave it away.

“Yeah, real fine.” Dean said, examining his hand the best he could. “Because that rock really needed to be beat up.” Sam didn’t say anything, just hissing as Dean probed his hand, asked him to move his fingers, and other things like that. “I don’t think it’s broken. We’ll have Lisa clean it up and wrap it for you.” Sam nodded. “Sammy, say something. You’re starting to scare me man.”

“I’m so tired of death.” Sam said, looking around. They could hear bombs in the distance. “I just wanted to play soccer and go to school. I didn’t want to be a soldier.” Dean could see the tears in Sam’s eyes. Out of the two of them, Sam had always been the more emotional one. Sam had only seen Dean cry a handful of times. Once was because he got nailed in the balls by some kids playing baseball, and once was because Sam had gotten so sick he had passed out and Dean was scared.

“I’m getting you out of here.” Dean told Sam, pulling him into a hug. “One way or another, I’m getting you out of this place. You can still go to California. It’ll be okay Sammy.” Sam wanted to believe Dean, but after losing their dad, Jessica, and Caleb to this damn thing, he was finding it harder and harder to believe.

“Yeah…” Sam said, offering Dean a small smile to tell him he believed him.

“Come on. We need to get your hand cleaned up before it has a chance to get infected.” Dean said, patting Sam’s shoulder. Sam nodded and followed his brother back to camp. Meg and Ruby were nowhere to be seen, but Dean had expected as much. Lisa jumped up from where she was sitting with Benny when she saw the blood on Sam’s hand.

“What happened?” She asked, eyes wide.

“Sammy here decided to pick a fight with a rock.” Dean explained. Lisa got her med kit and set Sam down by the fire to start cleaning him up. Benny went over to talk to the others as Dean hovered over Lisa, watching her dab peroxide on Sam’s hand. With ever hiss Sam had, she got a glare from the older brother. 

“Dean, relax.” Sam said. “It’s my fault, not Lisa’s.”

“Still. I thought nurses were supposed to be gentle.” Dean said. Lisa glared at Dean but bit her tongue. How did she ever even remotely think that she was in love with this? She focused on Sam instead. Sam was always nice to her, even when he had no reason to be. Sam was nice to everyone. Lisa carefully wrapped Sam’s hand and smiled at him.

“There. All better.” She said. “I’m out of lollipops though.” Sam laughed.

“Thanks Lisa.” He said, standing up and holding his hand against him. She cleaned it, but it still hurt. But Sam refused to take anything for the pain. It wasn’t that bad and they needed that stuff that they had “borrowed” for real emergencies. He found himself a large tree and set by it, pulling his knees to his chest. Lisa watched him for a second before Dean headed his way. She turned back to Benny. Dean set down by Sam.

“I want to go home.” Sam said softly, not even looking up at Dean. Dean wanted to tell him that they would go home soon, that John would be waiting there with a beer in his hand and Jessica would come over. And even Dean would have a girl on his arm. Caleb and the guys would crash their barbeque and everything would be perfect.

But Dean couldn’t promise any of that. He couldn’t even promise that they would survive the night. All Dean could do was wrap an arm around Sam and offer soft words.

“I know.”


	14. Chapter 14

A snowstorm was moving in. The dark clouds looked nasty, and if it would’ve been about ten degrees warmer, Cas was sure there would be a tornado instead. The drums could be heard in the distance. Coming from Calumet. They were marching again, for what no one in the group knew. All they knew was that too many of their own had died in the short time they had occupied their town, and it was time for them to go.

****

Soldiers set in the auditorium of Calumet high, staring at the screen ahead as their leader offered a Power Point presentation. The man standing on the stage was a hard faced man. He had been in the army since he was in his early twenties, and he had never left. He did good, damn good. And his great leader was not ready to let someone like him slip through his fingers.

Kweon Sang-jun stared out over his men with fire and determination in his eyes. After the last attack by the Hunters, he was ready for them to all to die already.

“Attention!” One of his underlings called out, getting silence from the auditorium.

“I know how rumors like to fly.” Sang-jun said, walking across the stage. “We are losing. Our great leader is upset with us. That our efforts will be useless within a few months. But rest assured, that is not the case.” He pointed at the projector just off stage with the little remote he had, starting the presentation. Black and white photos filled the screens.

“These are the known members of the Hunters.” He said. “Sergeant Dean Winchester, Samuel Winchester, Colonel Benjamin Lafitte, Lisa Braden RN, Rufus Turner, Robert Singer, Joanna Harvelle, Megan Masters, Ruby Masters, Fergus Crowley, James Murphy, Castiel Novak. We have received reports that we have successfully killed one of their members. A Caleb Padalecki. One down, twelve to go.” 

“We know they are hiding in the mountain.” Sang-jun continued, changing to the next slide. “One group of men found this out months ago when they tragically lost their lives to these vicious killers.” He paused for a second and switched to the next slide. “We have killed people in connection with them. Jonathan Winchester, Jessica Moore, Rick Padalecki, along with his son Caleb. We have brave brothers right now researching these Hunters. To figure out weaknesses, strengths, connections, etc. We will flush them out one way or another.”

****

They moved quietly. Men in all white suits to blend in with the snow. Following the trail of tanks that made their way towards the Hunters, these men set out on a mission. They were quiet and quick, but the Hunters were waiting. They had heard through their radio that a plan had been enacted to flush them out. There were spies everywhere, working for and against the allies. Dean was just glad that this information had been right.

Sam was on his stomach behind a tree stump, a gun out in front of him on a small tripod. He had so much hatred in his eyes. They had taken almost everything from him. His dad, his girlfriend, his best friend. All they hadn’t taken from him was Dean and he would be damned if they did that. He knew the others were scattered out in the snow around him, watching and waiting. Hell, Jo and Meg had even taken to the tree tops, guns ready and waiting. 

One of the white uniforms stepped on a trip wire that Benny had set up, setting off a bomb that blew up at least four men. Lisa smiled at his work as she fired a gun at people that ran toward their fallen comrades. Explosions and gunfire filled the air. Jo and Meg even dropped down from the treetops and slit a few throats.

“It’s quiet.” Ruby whispered after a little while. Meg stood in front of her, gun ready. Benny motioned for everyone to follow. Dean pulled Sam to his feet and they all walked behind Benny, looking for any sign of an ambush.

“If they’re still moving, shoot them.” Benny said. “We can’t have them calling back to their base to tell them what happened. They’ll figure it out on their own.” Everyone nodded and fanned out. Sam cringed as he heard a few shots going off. He looked over as Dean placed his gun against a head and fired. He made his way over to where Meg was standing, gun pointed at a terrified man. Ruby was off to the side, staring at her sister with wide eyes.

“Meg…” Sam said, walking over towards her. Ruby looked at Sam for help. “Meg, listen to me.”

“No.” She growled. “He killed Caleb. He was about to kill Cas. I’m done letting him kill people.”

“He didn’t kill Caleb.” Sam assured her. “Dean got rid of that guy. As for Cas, yeah he probably was. But he didn’t kill everybody. He’s a soldier just like we are.”

“I’m not a soldier!” Meg snapped. Sam sighed and gently put a hand on her shoulder.

“Yes you are. We all are whether we like it or not.” Sam told her. He looked down at the man. “And I think I have a better plan for him right now.”

****

“What are we doing?” Crowley asked, pacing behind the man they had sitting in the snow. His hands and feet were zip tied together, and even if he could get out of that, everyone around him had some sort of weapon. He wasn’t getting out of here easily.

“Parlez vous anglais?” Ruby asked, sitting in front of the man. “Sprichst du Englisch?” 

“So what if he does?” Jimmy said, staring at Ruby trying to get the man in front of her to say anything. Ruby looked back at him.

“I have to get him to say something.” She said.

“Just shoot him already!” Rufus said. “We don’t know if he has a fucking tracking device on him or something!” That’s when Lisa stood up from where she had been searching the jacket he had been wearing. She held up a device, gray and boxy.

“What is that?” Bobby asked.

“It looks like one of those things they use to check for radiation in movies.” Jo said. Lisa handed the device off to Benny for him to examine. Being at a higher ranking than Dean, he had probably seen more gadgets that the military had to offer. He examined the device.

“What is that thing?” Meg asked. The man didn’t answer, just staring straight ahead at her. She hauled off then and let her hand go flying, back handing him across the face. He fell onto the ground, Meg posed to punch him again when Cas placed a gentle hand on her shoulder. The man started mumbling things in Korean. Dean knelt in front of him then, his eyes dark and full of hate and anger.

“I hear a chopper or a tank of any kind, I’m blowing your fucking brains out.” He stated matter of factly. He was sure that statement meant in Korean what it did in English. The man spit at Dean then, red splattering on the snow when Dean backed up. The man was bleeding. Who knew how long he’d last?

“Go die Yankee.” He growled at Dean in broken English.

“I’m gonna kill him.” Dean looked over at Sam. “Can I shoot him?” Lisa stifled a laugh. It was like he was asking his wife permission for something.

“Not just yet.” Sam said. While he really didn’t want anyone else to die, having this man here was starting to piss Sam off. And it had been his idea to bring him there. 

“This thing is pointing.” Jo said, looking over Lisa’s shoulder. “It’s moving.”

“Where?” Dean asked, standing up. Lisa looked down at the device, eyes wide as she looked up. Dean looked to where it was pointing to see Rufus standing there awkwardly. “Rufus…”

“Dean…I can explain…” Rufus began. Benny walked towards him. Bobby looked heartbroken. Rufus was his best friend. They had been friends for years. How could he do something like this? To all of them?

“Where is it?” Dean asked, gritting his teeth. Benny stood behind him for backup.

“Did Caleb die because of you?” Jimmy asked, ignoring Dean’s request. “Did Caleb die because you sold us out?!” Tears were streaming down his face. Meg gripped her gun, ready to shoot Rufus if necessary. Dean grabbed Rufus and yanked him to his feet.

“Where is the god damn bug?!” Dean screamed. Rufus whimpered some.

“They made me swallow it.” He admitted.

“Rufus, you son of a bitch!” Bobby screamed. “How could you do this?!”

“Caleb is dead because of you!” Meg cried out. Dean glared Rufus down. Those tanks would’ve never been there if it hadn’t been for Rufus. Caleb would’ve never gave his life the way he did. They would’ve never had their own POW sitting just feet from them. It was all Rufus’s fault.

“My dad turned me in.” Rufus admitted. “I snuck off to see him and my mom. They had her. They told him that if he could turn in any of these suspects of espionage, he could have her back. So he saw my name on the list and I was sitting right there. They took me in, made me swallow the bug and told me to go back to you guys. So my mom and dad could be safe…”

“So your parents get to be safe while we lose ours?” Cas asked. “While Rick Padalecki and John Winchester have to die? Or Mr. Pellegrino? Or Jessica? What makes your family any more important than ours?”

“Because they’re my family!” Rufus said. “Crowley, you would do the same for your mother, right? Any of you would!”

“My mother is a heartless bitch and I hate her.” Crowley said. “Of course I would do the same for her. But I’m not going to! I want to survive. And from the look of it, you’re about to die.” Rufus was shoved to the ground by Dean.

“You stupid, stupid bastard.” Dean growled.

“Dean…” Benny said. The look between the two was enough. They knew what they had to do.

****

Rufus stood beside the POW. His arms were still zip tied. Rufus was free standing. His friends, or at least his former friends, stood in front of him, staring him down. Even Bobby, who had been his best friend for years, was glaring at him. He was so ashamed of what he did, but if he had the chance to do it again, he would. To keep his family safe.

“Do you want blindfolds?” Dean asked calmly. The POW mumbled something in his own language. Dean looked at Rufus.

“Dean, let him go!” Jo begged. She didn’t want Rufus to die this way. He had always been so nice to her.

“Shut up Jo!” Dean snapped at her, silencing her. He turned to look back at the two in front of him.

“He told them where we are.” Jimmy said. “Caleb died because of him.”

“Dean…” Sam said. Dean looked at his brother, seeing the pain in his eyes. “If we do this, what’s the difference between us and them?”

“We’re not them.” Dean said. “They killed Dad! They killed Jessica!”

“And according to you, he killed Caleb.” Sam said. “Did he pull the trigger? He might have led the tanks to us, but it was Caleb’s choice to climb up there and fight.”

“This is our home.” Dean said, a tear in his eye. He looked over at Benny, who nodded and took the pistol from Dean.

“Land of the free, home of the brave.” Benny said. “I got this Dean-o.” He looked at Rufus and the POW. “Any final words?”

“I’m so sorry.” Rufus whispered. Benny nodded and pointed the pistol at the POW first, shooting him. He fell to the ground. Rufus raised his hands. “Benny please, don’t shoot me.”

“I don’t know you the way they know you.” Benny explained. “It doesn’t hurt me as bad to get rid of a traitor. I’ve been doing it my whole career.”

“Don’t shoot him Benny.” Dean said. Benny looked back at Dean. Just as he did, the sound of a gun went off. But it hadn’t been Benny who had shot Rufus. Rufus fell to the feet of his killer, looking up to see tears coming down his face. Bobby wiped at his eyes and walked away from his friend.

“It’s done.” Bobby said. Dean looked at him with wide eyes. Meg turned away from Rufus and buried her head in Cas’s chest. He led her away, the others following, leaving Benny, Sam, and Dean standing there.

“Come on.” Sam told his brother quietly, gently pulling on his arm. Dean nodded and followed along behind Sam.

****

Sam added Rufus’s name to the rock. No one said anything, but he saw Bobby tear up when he saw the letters. He had killed his best friend. But that friend had caused the death of another friend, and probably would’ve caused more if they hadn’t been tipped off on the radio. Bobby had done the right thing.

Then why did he feel so shitty?


	15. Chapter 15

Dean set off by himself, keeping watch. He lit up a cigarette and took a puff. He had smoked on and off in the military, but he had started in high school. John had caught him and threatened to make him smoke a whole carton, but Dean told him he would quit. He was better at hiding it and actually only did it occasionally, when the stress was too much. Like the past few months had been. He always told himself he was going to stop after this one, but he never did. It took the edge off things and honestly, he was sure people would much rather have him smoke than do anything harder.

He looked around, making sure that no one was watching him, before he pulled a crumpled up picture from his pocket. One of the days that he had went to visit with Cain, he had given him this. Said he snagged it when he was in town one day and figure that Dean would like to have it back. It was a picture of him and Sam at Sam’s first soccer match ever. He was so little compared to the other players, but he had been so excited. His jersey was a little bit longer than it should’ve been, but the smile on his face was the biggest Dean had ever seen. Dean had his arm wrapped around Sam’s shoulders, an equally bit smile on his face. John had taken the picture. One of the few games of Sam’s that both him and Dean had been at. A few weeks later, Dean started riding his bike by himself to the games. And a few years after that, driving a car.

Dean was always there, even when he couldn’t be.

Dean didn’t realize it until he felt something wet on his hand that he had started to cry. He didn’t cry often, but when he did, everything that had been bottled up came out at once. He raised a hand and wiped at his eyes. He was supposed to be the big bad, brave soldier. He had told himself the last day he would cry would be family day, when Sam ran over to him and gave him a big hug and made him promise that he wouldn’t get himself blown up. He made Sam a lot of promises over the years and he was going to keep every damn one.

****

“We have to make a break for it.” Dean said, coming back to camp. “We can’t stay here any longer. It’s been too quiet and I’m afraid if we stay here any longer, they’re going to come for us.” He watched everyone. Lisa was stitching up a wound on Benny that he had gotten during a training exercise. Bobby was quiet. Everyone was quiet. Sam looked up at Dean and offered a small smile.

“If you think it’s best.” Sam said softly. Dean could tell that Sam had pretty much given up all hope of ever going to college, of playing soccer again, of having a normal life. The Hunters were doomed to a life of war, but Dean hoped that maybe if they could get to the lines, get to freedom, that they could have a small taste of life again. Dean set down across from Sam, staring at the fire that was going.

“Here’s the plan.” He said once Lisa was done with Benny and everyone was paying attention. “We stole some fuel from the last raid we had. It’s in the cave with the cars. We’ll make sure the Impala and the Pinto are filled. You guys take those and head toward the lines. Make sure you have all your ammo.”

“You guys?” Jimmy asked. “What about you?”

“I’m going into Calumet and distract them.” Dean said. Sam stood up.

“Like hell you are!” He said. “You’re coming with us!”

“No Sammy, I’m not.” Dean said. “I told you I was getting you out of here. This is the best way to do it.” Sam marched over to Dean and punched him square in the face, making Meg and Ruby gasp.

“You stupid son of a bitch!” Sam screamed. “I lost dad, I lost mom, Jessica, and Caleb. Hell, I even lost Rufus! You’re going to make me lose you too! Not fucking happening!”

“Sammy…”

“Don’t Sammy me!” Sam cried out. “You’ve been there my whole life! I’ve needed you my whole life! You can’t just leave me now!” Dean saw the large tears falling down his brother’s face. He felt his chest tighten. He always told himself he wouldn’t make Sam cry, and here he was, making his brother sob. Dean reached out and pulled Sam to his chest, wrapping his arms around Sam.

“Fine.” Dean said. “You can come with me. But once we know they’re all out of harm’s way, you’re hightailing it to Free America. Got it bitch?” Dean smiled at Sam.

“Of course jerk.” Sam said, wiping at his eyes. Dean rubbed at his sore cheek.

“Where did you learn to punch?” Dean asked with a chuckle. Everyone looked over at Jimmy then.

“What?” Jimmy asked. “Kids gotta learn to defend himself.” He laughed. Dean kept an arm around Sam but set back down, pulling Sam with him. Lisa didn’t realize she had been staring until she felt Benny’s fingers lace with hers and gently pull her down to sit.

“Cas, you and Bobby are in charge of Baby.” Dean said. “You two are the only ones I trust with her outside of Sammy.”

“I feel so honored.” Cas laughed. Dean looked over at Lisa.

“Lisa, can you take the Pinto?” He asked. She nodded quietly.

“Of course.” She said. She felt Benny squeeze her hand. She looked at him and offered a small smile. Dean told them the plan, loading the trunks full of whatever they could carry and how the best way to squeeze people into the vehicles were. Everyone noticed how his hand never strayed too far from Sam, but they all knew why. He was scared of losing his little brother and touching Sam offered comfort to both of them.

“Are we all clear on the plan?” Dean asked. Everyone nodded. “Good. Sammy, let’s go load up on ammo. We’ll head out at the same time as them.” Sam smiled softly and nodded, heading towards the cave. Lisa watched Dean’s face. She could tell he didn’t want Sam to go with him, but Sam wasn’t giving him much choice.

“Dean.” Lisa said softly. Dean turned to look at her. “Take good care of Sam for me, okay?” He smiled some.

“I will.” He said. “Watch out for Benny too.” She nodded and turned to look at Benny, who was helping the guys get everything together. Most of what they were taking with them could fit in the back of the Impala. Everyone crammed into the cars, except for Sam and Dean. The cars took off as the Winchester boys headed toward Calumet.

****

Dean and Sam found a train heading into Calumet. Dean had it all planned out. They would ride the train, dropping explosives along the way, drawing attention away from the cars heading towards Free America.

But there was just a feeling in Dean’s chest that the plan wasn’t going to work as they boarded the train and crouched down by the weapons.

****

Sang-jun stood outside on the patio of town hall. He heard the faint whistle in the air of a train in the distance. There was something in the air tonight. He had heard from one of his men that the Hunters weren’t where they were supposed to be. And Sang-jun was smart. He knew that they were out there.

The train started going by at a slow pace. Sang-jun saw it when the train went by. A brief glance of camo. There was a second one not far behind. He quickly walked down the path and, sure enough, he saw the camo again. Smiling to himself, he raised his pistol he was holding, and fired.


	16. Chapter 16

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hi guys! Thank you so much for reading! After this chapter, I think there will probably be about 2 more. If it turns out longer, I'll let you know!

Cas looked over at Bobby as he drove the Impala towards Free America. Lisa was right behind them in the Pinto. She had offered to let Bobby drive it, but there was no way he could, not after everything with Rufus. Cas studied the features on his friend. Crowley, Jimmy, and Jo were in the backseat, all silent. Cas sighed after a moment.

“Stop the car.” Cas said. Bobby slowed the car. They were still hidden from the main road, driving backroads. Soon, both cars stopped. Benny and Dean had gotten handheld radios from Cain and were using them to talk back and forth to each other.

“What’s going on?” Benny’s voice echoed throughout the Impala. Cas picked up the handheld device.

“I can’t just leave them back there.” He said. Crowley leaned forward in the backseat. Jimmy and Jo looked at each other. “You guys can go ahead. I’m going back for Sam and Dean.”

“That’s suicide!” Bobby said. “We’ve already lost enough people…”

“They’re my friends.” Cas explained. He grabbed his gun from the space between him and Bobby and made a move to get out of the car.

“Balls.” Bobby groaned under his breath. “Cas wait.” Cas stopped and looked at Bobby. He turned around in his seat to look at Crowley, Jimmy, and Jo. “You three can go squeeze into the Pinto if you want. I’m going to with Cas to get the Winchester’s.”

“No way.” Jimmy said. 

“In for a penny, in for a pound.” Crowley said with a shrug.

“I owe Sam my life. He saved me. So going to save him is the least I can do.” Jo said. Cas settled back into his seat. Bobby grabbed the mic.

“Benny, Lisa, we’re going to get Sam and Dean.” Bobby said into the walkie talkie.

“Are you guys insane?” Benny asked. Bobby smirked some. He looked in the rearview mirror at Jimmy, Jo, and Crowley. He looked over at Cas. They all shared smiles with him.

“Just a little bit yeah.” Bobby said. He didn’t even have to hear it to know that Benny was sighing.

“The girls all said we’re going too.” Benny told them. “Let’s go get our boys.” Bobby smiled and turned the car, flying back towards Calumet.

****

“There’s refugees.” Jo said as they headed towards the town. She knew a lot of these people. Some of those kids she babysat from time to time. “Let me out.”

“Jo…” Bobby said.

“Do it.” She said. Bobby sighed and stopped the car. Jo jumped out and ran over to a discarded truck. He could hear some of the people telling her it was broken, but soon enough, it fired up.

“Come with us if you want to live!” She called out to the people. They all looked at each other before loading the truck. Jimmy got out to stand in the back and defend the people there.

“Joanna Beth!” A woman called out. Jo turned to see her mother standing amongst the group of refugees. She had left Cain’s place to find Jo and ended up in a POW camp. The last one liberated by the Hunters.

“Mama!” Jo called out, running to Ellen and hugging her.

“Baby, what are you doing here?” She asked, holding her daughter. “You need to get out of here!”

“I can’t.” Jo said. Ellen looked down at her. “My friends are in trouble. We have to go save them.” Ellen looked around and saw neither Sam nor Dean among the group.

“Those Winchester boys are going to drive me crazy.” Ellen said. Jo smiled.

“Yeah, but they sure do save a whole hell of a lot of people along the way.” Jo told her. Ellen nodded and climbed into the cab of the truck with Jo.

“We ready?” Bobby called out. Jo gave him a thumb’s up. The convoy made their way to Calumet then. Ready to save the Winchester’s.

****

Dean thought he heard a gunshot off to the left of him, but there were all kinds of gunshots around these parts. But what followed he didn’t hear normally. 

“Ah!” Sam called out. Dean turned to see his brother fall off the side of the train. Every single fear Dean could think of was going through his mind as he jumped off the train and rolled. He crawled over to where Sam was, but he didn’t even have a chance to check his brother over. Their cover was coming to an end. Dean grabbed Sam under the armpits and pulled him behind large crates of ammo. He noticed red in the snow as he pulled him.

“Sammy…” Dean said softly, patting his brother’s cheek. Sam’s eye fluttered open and he looked up at Dean.

“H-hurts.” Sam whispered. Dean didn’t even have to ask where. It was obvious by the red spot on Sam’s chest. Dean’s hands were shaking as he gently got Sam to sit up.

“Let me look at ya.” He said, feeling around to Sam’s back. The bullet had gone through, causing who knew how much damage along the way. It obviously hadn’t pierced the heart, or Sam wouldn’t be there to talk to him.

“Dean…” Sam whispered. Dean heard the footsteps behind him. He spun around, pistol pointed at the intruder. He kept himself between Sam and Sang-jun.

“I’ve waited a long time to meet you.” Sang-jun said, aiming his gun at Dean. “I’m glad I’ll be the one to kill the leader of the infamous Hunters.”

“Fuck you.” Dean growled. He saw Sang-jun’s trigger finger itching to pull it, and just as he was about to, a shot rang out from behind him. He fell to the ground, the back of his head blown open. “That was anti-climatic.” Dean said. He looked up to see Cas standing there, lowering his gun. “Cas?”

“I couldn’t leave you two behind.” He said. He raced over to Sam. “Oh shit.”

“C-Cas…” Sam said. He was shivering from the cold.

“The others are waiting for us. We have some people we’re getting out of here. Jo has them in a truck. But we need to go now.” Cas said. Dean nodded and went to Sam to pick him up, but Sam weakly pushed him away.

“Not gonna make it…” His soft voice said. “Leave me.”

“Don’t say that.” Dean growled. He carefully hefted his brother into his arms. “We’re getting out of here together, okay?”

Cas led the way, keeping his gun up and ready for anyone who jumped them. But the town was eerily quiet. The couple people they saw took one look at Sam in Dean’s arms and completely looked the other way.

“Dean…” Sam whispered, his eyes started to drift closed. Dean shook him a little, making him open his eyes.

“Hey, just keep ‘em open for me.” Dean said. “We’re almost there. We’ll get you bundled up in baby and get you to safety, okay?”

“Remember the Grand Canyon?” Sam asked, sounding more like a sleepy toddler than anything. “You were on a gassy donkey.”

“How the hell do you remember that?” Dean asked, shaking his head some. Cas had a smile on his face as he heard the interaction between the brothers. This was what they were fighting for.

“D-De…” Sam looked up at Dean with glazed eyes. “I love you jerk.”

“I love you too bitch.” Dean said, keeping an eye out for an ambush. Sam rested his head against Dean’s chest and closed his eyes. Just a couple minutes of sleep… “Hey, think about this. Once we get to the cars and get to Free America, I’ll get you all fixed and I’ll find someone that makes those smoothies you like. How’s that sound?” But Sam didn’t answer. “Sammy?” Dean asked, looking down at his brother, asleep in his arms. “Sammy, wake up!” Dean said. He stopped at a park bench and laid Sam down on it.

“Dean?” Cas asked. Dean was shaking his brother, but Sam was limp.

“Sammy, hey! Wake up! No time for sleeping!” Dean said, trying to get his brother to wake up but he knew it wasn’t happening. Tears were streaming down his face as Dean realized he had lost the last of his family. “Sammy…come back…”

“Dean…we have to go.” Cas said. Dean glared at Cas then.

“I can’t leave him here!” Dean snapped. Cas took a step back from him. He had seen Dean mad, shit faced, pissed off, and a whole other spectrum of emotions. But this Dean was almost demonic. “I promised him I would protect him.”

“Dean, we have to go. You…bring him with you. They’re on our tail. We have to go now.” Dean sighed and nodded. He carefully picked Sam up and cradled him against his chest. He followed along behind Cas to where the vechiles set. Jimmy and Crowley jumped out of the car as Dean approached.

“Sam?” Lisa asked, staring at Dean. “Oh god no…” Ruby’s eyes were wide as she watched Sam’s arm dangle from where Dean was carrying him. He climbed into the backseat and pulled Sam in with him. Crowley moved to the front seat with Bobby and Cas, while Jimmy went to the Pinto.

It was silent, except for Dean softly singing to Sam’s body as they made their way towards Free America.


	17. Chapter 17

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> There should be just one more chapter to go! Thank you for reading!

There was a checkpoint up ahead. Benny had taken the lead since Dean was in no position to show any papers or talk to any military personal. Amongst the refugees that Jo and Jimmy had in the truck were some military POW’s. Some of their group had been killed when they dropped into Calumet looking for the Hunters to offer them support. They were what was left. Andrew Gallagher, Victor Hendrickson, and Cole Trenton.

“Stop.” A man at the checkpoint said. Benny rolled down the window so the man could lean against it. “Can I help you?”

“Colonel Benjamin Lafitte requesting permission to bring some Americans home.” Benny said. He produced his papers for the man to review. “There are other military personal in the vehicles behind us.” The guy radioed back what he had and was told to let them enter. Benny motioned for everyone to follow, and together they made their way into Free America.

Dean wasn’t sure what was going on. One minute, he was sitting in the back of the Impala, holding Sam and praying that his pulse was just faint and would come back. The next, his little brother was being taken away from him with promises that they would try to fix this. Dean’s wild animal mode activated and he wanted to launch himself at the person who took his Sammy away from him, but he was held back by Cas and Bobby.

“Are you okay?” A sweet woman asked, noticing all the blood on Dean. A tear fell down his face.

“It’s not mine.” He whispered. She looked up at the two men who nodded in agreement. She offered up a sad smile before walking away to check on the others. Dean slumped against the Impala.

“Dean…” Cas said. Dean looked up at him.

“I failed him.” Dean whimpered. “Sammy…dad…mom…I failed them all.” Cas grabbed Dean and pulled him into a hug. And soon, he wasn’t alone. Several other arms were wrapped around them, hugging the last Winchester, trying to take away his pain.

“Dean.” Cain said, stepping towards him after the group had disbursed to get food and medical help. “As someone who has lost a brother, I know how hard this is for you.” He placed a hand on Dean’s shoulder. “I just want you to know that now Sam is someplace safe, where nothing can hurt him. You did protect him in the end.”

“Why don’t I feel like it?” Dean asked. “Why can’t my dad and Sam and Caleb, and everyone that has died just come back?” Dean looked at Cain for the answers, but Cain could only offer a small shrug.

Later that night, Dean, Benny, Andy, Victor, and Cole were all set in the commanding officer for this post’s tent. He was debriefing the men of their “adventures” in enemy territory, and giving Dean and Benny credit for all the kills and saves. Dean didn’t say anything though. Because the one save that meant the world to him hadn’t been accomplished and he missed him. He missed him so damn much. Once the CO released them, Dean bolted, despite the fact that Benny hung back to talk to the other three. Dean wanted to find a bar and drink himself silly. Maybe he could drink just enough that he could see Sam again.

“Dean.” A soft voice from behind him. He turned around to see Ruby standing there.

“Shit Ruby, you can’t just sneak up on people like that.” Dean said.

“Sorry.” She said, looking down. She didn’t really talk much, Meg usually did all the talking for her, much like Dean used to do for Sam. “Lisa asked me to bring this to you.” She held out a Calumet High gym bag.

“Why?” Dean asked. Ruby looked up at him.

“It’s Sam’s.” She said. Dean didn’t even have to be told twice, swiping the bag from her.

“Uh…thanks Ruby.” Dean said. She nodded and walked away quickly. Dean quickly headed towards the quarters he had been given, wanting to hide away from everyone. He didn’t want to see another damn person ever again, but he knew that wasn’t possible. So hiding for a few hours was the next logical step.

Dean walked into the small tent. The fabric helped block out a lot of the sound from the outside. He flopped down on the provided cot, the gym bag setting on the ground beside him. He ran a hand down his face, fatigue hitting him hard. He was a little pissed at himself that he didn’t even get a bottle of beer, but there were more important things right now. Like that damn gym bag sitting on the floor. He carefully pulled it up onto the cot by him, like it was the most important object in the world. And to Dean, it was.

Carefully unzipping it, the first thing Dean saw were a couple pieces of clothing. Everyone kept a few pieces away from the general group that they didn’t want ruined. One of the shirts in Sam’s bag was one of Dean’s Led Zeppelin tees that he had left on the back floorboard of the Impala. The other was Sam’s soccer jersey he had been wearing the day they made a break for the mountains. Dean held it in his hands, staring at it. The wolverine colors, the name Winchester on the back, Sam’s number, every little detail. Dean carefully laid it aside and went through the bag more.

There was a couple spiral bound notebooks that had come in the supplies from Cassie and her brother. The first one Dean opened had some homemade games; tic-tac-toe, hangman, and Mad Libs. Dean had to smile some at the answers that he was sure Caleb had gave Sam for the Mad Libs. Sam’s best friend had a dirty mind and a dirty mouth, but if you had asked his mom, she would tell you he was a fine young man.

Dean got to witness that first hand.

The other notebook was a little bit thicker than the game one had been. Opening it up, Dean realized it wasn’t just a notebook. It was a journal. Sam had been writing in it, trying to keep himself sane. Carefully, Dean flipped each page, reading the little snippets that Sam had put on the pages. There were little doodles in the margins, but Sam’s real strength was with the words. He knew how to handle a pen and poor so much emotion and strength into the simplest of words. Dean sometimes was jealous that Sam had such an amazing gift. That’s when Dean noticed his name wrote at the top of the last page.

_Dean,_

_If you’re reading this, then either I’m dead or stupid enough to let you read it. Probably the first part. I have the Winchester luck after all. If I’m dead, you’re probably blaming yourself right now, aren’t you? It’s not your fault Dean. Whatever I did, I probably shouldn’t have. But that’s not important right now. What is important is that you need to move on with your life. Don’t drink yourself into an early grave, don’t turn into dad, don’t do anything like that. You told me that you were going to get me out and I was going to go on and tell people our story. Well, this is how I’m going to do it. Through you. You have this journal and you have all the memories. You have to live on to tell our story. As for the rest of your life, I really liked Lisa, I thought she was nice, but I don’t think she was right for you. Plus her and Benny seem pretty close. Out of all your girlfriends that you’ve had in the past, I think I would be happy to see you and Cassie together. She risked her life to help us and I can’t think her enough. She’d be willing to put up with your dumbass. And Dean, here’s the mandatory chick flick moment that you hate (I know you love them). You’re the best big brother that anyone could ask for. And I know that you would be a great dad someday, because you already raised me._

_I love you jerk,  
Sammy_

Tears filled Dean’s eyes. He wasn’t sure if he could go on looking through Sam’s bag, but something was calling to him. He carefully laid the journal on top of the jersey. There were a couple small items in the bag that didn’t catch Dean’s interest, but one thing did. Sam’s wallet. He didn’t even know that Sam had brought it with him to the mountains. He saw a corner of a piece of paper sticking out of the bottom. He opened it to see a picture he thought would be lost for the rest of his life. One of his favorites. It was the one that he had seen several times on the fridge since John had it printed years ago. Sam was squirmy from John tickling his sides. Dean hadn’t really wanted to be there, but now he was glad he was.

Something snapped in Dean then. He didn’t cry anymore, he didn’t scream. He didn’t do anything like that. Instead, he gathered up everything of Sam’s and put it back in the bag. He grabbed his own items and headed towards the Impala. Some of the supplies from the mountains were still in the trunk of the Impala.

“Dean?” Cas said, watching the Winchester looking around the car. “Dean, what’s going on?” Dean didn’t say anything though. He just got in the car and sped off from the base. Cas ran over to the others who were in line to get food.

“Cas? What is it?” Benny asked. Cas’s eyes were wide.

“Guys, Dean just ran off.” Cas explained.

“What do you mean he ran off?” Jimmy asked.

“He’s gone.” Cas said. “He left. And I have a feeling he’s not coming back.”


	18. Chapter 18

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you so much to everyone who read this train wreck. I hope you liked reading as much as I loved writing!

Twelve Years Later

_“This year is the tenth anniversary since the defeat of North Korean forces and the reclaiming of the United States. Several events are going on not only today, but all week. There is a memorial service on the front lawn of the White House today, followed by a nationwide moment of silence. Several rebuilt cities are hosting festivities including firework shows. July 4th is a big event, but this gives newer generations a taste of what is worth fighting for…”_

“I’m tired of hearing this every year.” Benny grumbled, cleaning glasses behind the bar. Retirement looked good on him. He had taken a job at Sal’s not long after Operation Reclaim. The colonel was finally ready to relax and more than willing to break up a bar fight here or there.

“Oh come on, it’s not that bad.” Jo said, setting her tray on the bar and dropping off a couple beer steins. “It’s patriotic.” Benny shook his head and took the glasses from her. The bell above the door rang then and Benny smiled as Lisa came in.

“Hey honey.” Benny said, walking from around the bar to place a kiss on her lips. “Long night?”

“Tell me about it.” She groaned. “I was going to go pick Ben up from daycare, but he’s asleep so I just thought I’d let him be for a little bit.” Benny smirked and went back around to pour Lisa a beer.

“Jimmy invited us all to mass tonight.” Jo said. “Mom said I should go. Said church would do me some good.”

“I’ve made my peace with god. We’re good now.” Benny said with a shrug. Lisa was about to say something when a noise outside caught her attention. She turned to look out the glass door and gasped at what she saw.

A black, 1967 Chevy Impala drove by the bar.

“Is that…” Jo started, looking from Benny to Lisa. Lisa set her beer down and went to the door.

“He’s back.” She said. Benny looked around the bar and found it empty. Everyone who had been here had to go back to work or the festivities in town. He turned the Open sign off and turned off the lights.

“Let’s go see him then.” He said.

****

The car made the trek up the road towards the forest, which was now a state park. People came with their kids to have picnics and camp, many knowing about what happened on this mountain, but someday it would just be a page in the history books and the people who came out here wouldn’t know from a first-hand source what had happened here. On the edge of the forest, in a clearing, set several boulders. A plaque was anchored to one of the boulders, explaining the significance of the boulders. The Impala parked right there, right by that memorial.

The driver’s door opened up and Dean Winchester climbed out. His skin had been kissed by the sun on his travels, making him a couple shades tanner than he had been when he left Colorado years ago. Dark sunglasses covered his eyes, hiding the green orbs from anyone. A baseball cap that said San Jac’s Saloon was on his head. He had worked there for a couple months while living in Austin. He had worked a lot of places for not very many months, just trying to keep himself busy. He took note of some people standing around the boulder, staring at the names and other things carved into it.

“This stands a memorial for the brave men and women who died during the North Korean occupation of the United States,” A man read to his kids. “These people died so that we could live, and we must remember them. This stands so that people can also remember the Hunters, a group of kids and young adults who fought to keep Calumet safe for another day…”

Dean nodded along as he read the names on the stone. John Winchester, Mark Pellegrino, Jessica Moore, Caleb Padalecki, Rick Padalecki, Rufus Turner, as well as a few other names that hadn’t been there when Dean left. But one name was missing, and that bugged him more than anything. Pulling out a pocket knife he had gotten while working in Georgia, Dean climbed up on the rock.

“Hey! I don’t think you’re supposed to be up there.” The woman that was there with the man and kids said. Dean ignored her, climbing to the top and starting to carve Sam’s name into the stone like Sam had done with all the others.

“Hey!” The man said. Dean glared down at him, gripping his knife. The man raised his hands. “Uh…never mind.” He quickly led the woman and the kids away from Dean.

“Stupid asshole.” Dean grumbled to himself. He slid down to the ground after he finished his work. Sam Winchester. His name deserved to be up there with all the others. He deserved so much more than what he got. But Dean couldn’t fix that. This was the best he could go.

“I saw your book.” A voice said behind Dean. He spun around and saw Crowley standing there. He was wearing a police uniform, something that surprised Dean. He always expected an orange jumpsuit. “It’s really good. Sam’s journal. That was a good idea.”

“Hey Crowley.” Dean said, folding up his pocket knife. “How’d you know I’d be here?”

“A vintage ’67 Chevy Impala comes into town and people talk.” He said with a shrug. “They all want to see you.”

“I can’t. Not with the way I left.” Dean said. “I’m just stopping through. Have an appointment with a woman named Jenny. She lives in the old house and has things that were left.” He looked Crowley up and down. “And since when did you get on the right side of the law?”

“Since you ran off and inspired people.” Crowley explained. “You and Sam saved a lot of people. I figure that I might as well follow you’re example.” Dean sighed. “Jimmy is hosting a mass tonight. More of a get together for the surviving Hunters. Please come.”

“Crowley…”

“There will be food.” Crowley said with a shrug. Dean sighed.

“We’ll see.” He turned and headed for his car, leaving Crowley standing there by his own.

****

“Mommy, is this going to be boring?” Ben asked as Lisa carried him into the church. While it would be a mass, it was really more of a reunion for the hunters that remained in Calumet, or the ones that had survived the occupation.

“No honey. It’ll be fun.” Lisa said, ruffling his hair. “And Aunt Meg and Uncle Cas will be here. I know how much you love them.” Benny watched his wife and son with a pleased smile on his face.

Soon, Benny, Lisa, Jo, Cas, Crowley, Meg, Ruby, and Bobby gathered in the first few pews of Jimmy’s church. Ben set between Benny and Lisa, staring at the beautiful stain glass windows and amazing artwork. Jimmy looked around at everyone, sighing a little.

“I’m glad to see everyone here.” He said. He was about to start his small sermon before the food was served when the doors to the church opened. Everyone turned around to look.

“Mom, who’s that?” Ben asked. Lisa stood up and raced down the aisle to him, wrapping her arms around him.

“Dean.” Lisa gasped, hugging him tightly. She pulled back after a second. “Where the fuck have you been?! Sorry Jimmy.”

“Acceptable in this case.” Jimmy said, waving her off. Dean took the hat off his head.

“Everywhere.” He said. “I stayed in Free America until the occupation was over. Then I travelled the country. Anywhere I could to keep my mind off of things. Published Sam’s journal, minus a page or two.” He looked around at everyone staring at him, including a little boy he had never seen before. “This can all wait though.”

“I think the lord would rather hear this story than me telling his word right now.” Jimmy said. Dean shook his head. He didn’t want to get into this right now. He didn’t even really want to be here, but talking to some of the old neighbors who had gotten their homes back and seeing Crowley up at the mountain made Dean think. And he decided it was best after all these years to tell them he wasn’t dead. He sighed and set in a pew. Everyone turned so they could see him.

“Well, after I left, I headed towards deep Free America. I hung out there for a while, doing some training for Special Forces who would go to drive the enemy out. Once that happened, I bounced from state to state. Texas for a few months, New York, hell I even ended up in Canada for a while. But after all that running, I got tired. I figured it was time I came home.” Dean explained.

“We’re glad you’re back.” Jimmy said. “If you need a place to stay, I’m sure that many of us would open our homes to you.” Dean nodded and settled into the pew. Plans could be made later. Right now, Dean just wanted to listen and forget for a while.

****

Months Later

A mountains still were a beautiful backdrop to Calumet. The roads had been repaved during reconstruction, taking away potholes and unnecessary bumps. The McDonald’s with the burnt out M had been upgraded and was now partnered with a gas station. “Eat here and get gas” was a popular joke among the locals. The inside was new though, and it still was a popular place for breakfast.

The movie theater had been updated with a digital projector. But it mainly showed vintage films on the weekends and kids movies during the week when schools were on a break. There was a multi-cinema not too far away that housed newer films. Currently, there was an Elvis movie on the marquee. Viva Las Vegas and Jailhouse Rock would be on screen this weekend.

The parking lot of the high school was finally paved. There were a lot of divots in the gravel from tanks and other machines tearing it up. The Wolverine had been painted, standing out against the old building now. There was a memorial in the main hall of the high school, to remember the former students of Calumet who had fought hard and proud to keep the town safe.

Dean Winchester took it all in as he drove from the small house he had bought on his old street. Two down from the one he used to live in with his brother and dad. He had gotten a job at the old garage his dad worked at. The owner had welcomed Dean with open arms, after making Dean promise that he wasn’t going to jump ship after a couple months. So Dean made the trek from home to work, a Blue Oyster Cult song soundtrack for his drive.

The End

**Author's Note:**

> Feedback welcome!


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